Alphabits
by nyislandersgirl
Summary: A Pokeshipping-centric alphabet challenge! 26 one shots based off of the alphabet, all centered around Ash and Misty! Rated T; some chapter content might be stronger than others.
1. Admonish

**I'm baaad.**

**So, I know I should be focusing on my other "summer challenge" that I gave myself, but to be honest, I need a bit of a break from it because I feel like there's a lot of negative energy surrounding it. Sounds weird, but meh. I need to step away from it for a bit. So, I've decided to try something a little different. Something I've been wanting to try since I first joined this site many years ago. And that is an alphabet challenge! It was untitledmind's FABULOUS alphabet challenge "Twenty-Six" that finally kicked my butt into gear. **

**So, this is my goal: get one letter up each day and finish the challenge before the end of August. Can I actually do it? Who knows. I hope so! Let's try it out ;)**

* * *

**Admonish**

"Ash, don't do that."

No response.

"Ash, I mean it! You're going to get hurt!"

No response.

"ASH KETCHUM, I WILL BREAK YOUR NECK IF YOU DON'T DO IT FIRST!"

Ash turned around, flashing a dazzling smile at Misty. "Come on Mist." The smile, and the fact that he had called Misty by her nickname, was enough to make the red headed gym leader's heart all but stop completely. "I'm not going to get hurt."

"So says you," Misty huffed. "I know what I'm talking about."

"How?"

"I _live_ here, you dolt."

"What's jumping off the cape gonna do?" Ash murmured as he peered over the grassy edge at the ocean water that splashed down below. "It's just for fun!"

"I already told you. You'll break your neck."

"I won't."

"I'm not taking bets on that."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't want to take bets on how you're going to kill yourself. That's why."

Smirking, Ash stood back up and asked Misty, "you mean to tell me you've never jumped off the cape before? Into the water?"

"No. Of course not."

"Why not?"

"Because that's dumb."

"Why?"

"Because it _is._"

Ash smirked, knowing full well that one simple action would get Misty's blood boiling. "Give me one good reason as to why it's dumb."

"Because there are _rocks_ down there."

"Haha, yeah ri-wait, what?"

"In the water right underneath the cape, there are rocks," Misty dully explained before glaring at Ash. "You don't think I got that warning enough as a kid?"

"Uh…I…I…" Ash stammered, looking between Misty and the edge of the cape before gasping and gripping his head with his hands. "You mean I almost _broke my neck?!_"

"Well, I wouldn't say _almost_, because you actually used your brain for once and listened to me," Misty quipped, causing Ash to scowl. "It's more like you _could_ have, because you're…well…you're you."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Ash grumbled, folding his arms across his chest as he turned his head away indignantly.

"It means that you act before you think, which is stupid," Misty replied easily. "That's why you get into so much trouble all of the time."

"Thinking takes too much time," Ash complained with a pout.

"You're so impatient," Misty sighed, brushing past the young man so she could reach the edge of the cape. She sat down and allowed her legs to dangle off of the edge, staring off into the distance above the sparkling water that splashed below. Ash soon joined the red head, sitting beside her and swinging his legs back and forth. "See?"

The boy squeaked, and whipped his head to the side so he was staring at Misty. "See what?"

"You're kicking your legs back and forth," Misty responded, pointing at his swinging limbs.

"So?"

"You're impatient."

Ash's jaw quite literally dropped at this. "How does _swinging my legs_ prove that I'm impatient?!"

"Because you can't even sit still for five minutes. That's how."

"Yeah, okay," Ash muttered sarcastically as he rolled his eyes. He was still swinging his legs back and forth, mostly to bother Misty. And it seemed to be working well enough.

"You really shouldn't be so impatient."

Ash smirked and looked at Misty once more. "You really should stop telling me what to do."

"I'm not _telling you what to do!_" Misty argued, wanting to smack the smug grin off of Ash's face. "I'm admonishing you!"

Ash's smirk disappeared as he cocked his head. "What's that mean?"

"What?"

"Admonish?"

Misty narrowed her eyes. "You seriously don't know what 'admonish' means?"

Ash pressed his lips together and shook his head. Misty, in turn, sighed dramatically and buried her face in her hands as she slumped her shoulders forward.

"Does it mean to boss someone around?" Ash asked only half-jokingly.

"I will beat you," Misty threatened, pulling her hands away from her face in order to point a menacing finger right in Ash's face. The boy pulled back and blinked just once, staring at Misty's finger as though it were the barrel of a gun. Rolling her eyes, Misty lowered her arm and instead chose to simply glare at Ash for asking such a stupid question and following it up with such a stupid comment. "'Admonish' means to warn you about something. I'm giving you _advice_, not telling you what to do."

"Oh," Ash murmured.

"I'm also not being bossy," Misty seethed, shoving Ash by the shoulder. At this point, however, he was much bigger and more solid than Misty, and hardly budged when she pushed him. This only further aggravated the red head.

_Stupid puberty._

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I guess I don't really mind being _admonished _by you," Ash added, putting extra emphasis on the new word that Misty had just taught him.

"Oh?" Misty hummed in a slightly sarcastic manner. "And why's that?"

"Because at least it means I'm spending time with you," Ash answered, bringing a considerable blush to the girl's face. "I'd rather be with you and get admonished _every five minutes_ than not be with you at all."

"You really mean that?" Misty asked softly, rubbing her upper arm as she turned her head away. She didn't want Ash to see just how red she was. Her face must have been as bright as her hair based solely on how hot her flesh felt!

"Of course I do," Ash replied earnestly. "I wouldn't lie to you, Mist."

Misty finally managed to get her blush to go down and picked her head back up to smile at Ash. "That's…really sweet of you, Ash. Really. Thank you."

"Heh, don't mention it!" Ash chuckled, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. He swung one of his legs back too far at that very moment, and ended up smashing the back of his heel against the rocky façade of the cape. "Ouch!"

Misty shot Ash a knowing look, which he completely missed because he was so busy nursing his now sore foot. "What did I say about swinging those legs back and forth, Ash?"

"Yeah, yeah, I got it," Ash hissed, pulling up his foot and trying to yank off his sneaker.

"Maybe you should listen to me the next time I admonish you instead of just appreciating my presence," Misty purred teasingly.

"Not gonna' happen, Mist. Not in a million years."

* * *

**And there's A! We still have 25 more one shots to go...hopefully in a consecutive manner! Stick with me and see where this little challenge takes us, won't you? :P**


	2. Brave

**Here's B, just like I promised! This one was fun for me to write. I got it done pretty quick!**

* * *

**Brave**

"Oh, Ash, you're _so_ brave!"

Misty rolled her eyes and leaned against a nearby tree, folding her arms across her chest as she glared at her boyfriend who stood only a few feet away from her along with another girl.

Another girl who Misty did _not_ approve of.

It was quite obvious she was one of Ash's fan girls, what with him being the Kanto Champion that he was. But they had found her in the middle of the forest during their trek, looking quite confused. She had claimed she was lost, and while Misty didn't really care, Ash had jumped in right away and offered to help the girl.

The way her lips had curved up into that sickeningly sweet smile had made Misty want to punch the little tramp square in the face.

Anyway, that little bimbo had been squealing and shrieking because an Ursaring had come too close to them. Misty knew for a fact that the giant bear wasn't going to do anything to them, because it was unprovoked. She was pretty sure Ash had known that as well, since Pokémon were the only thing he had any excessive knowledge about, but he had managed to calmly get the Ursaring away anyway in order to relax their new little "friend."

So now she wouldn't shut up about how "brave" Ash was.

_It's just an Ursaring, _Misty thought acidly. _That _hardly _makes him brave._

"Misty, come on!"

The red head snapped out of her reverie and found herself staring at Ash and…the stupid auburn haired girl whose name was Mandy or something like that.

"What?" Misty retorted, not willing to play nice with Ash at the moment.

"We have to keep going," Ash replied calmly, pointing down the path that was winding through the forest. "Or else we'll never get out of here before dark!"

Misty was about to huff that she didn't really care when they would get out of the forest, but then she remembered they still had Maria with them, and that the sooner they got out of the forest, the sooner they'd be able to ditch her.

_I hate it when Ash makes a good point._

"Fine," Misty grumbled, stepping away from the tree and rejoining the other two. "Let's go."

She marched alongside Ash, making sure to stand between him and the girl, with her nose up in the air. She also made sure not to make any eye contact with the other female, either.

"Misty, don't you think Ash is so _brave?_"

Misty growled and awarded the girl next to her with nothing more than a steely side glance. "Why in the world would I think he's brave?"

"Because he got rid of that mean, old, nasty Ursaring!" The girl squealed. "All without getting us chased, too! That's so amazing!"

Misty scoffed and threw her head to the side so her fiery red locks swung out in the direction of the unfamiliar girl. Misty had been hoping her hair had gotten long enough to have been able to whack Marissa right in the face. But it hadn't.

_Too bad._

"That's not amazing _or _brave," Misty seethed, still refusing to look at the girl head on. "_You're_ just easily enamored, _Marley._"

"Uh…it's _Maddie_," the girl corrected.

"Whatever, same difference," Misty grumbled beneath her breath.

Ash was, of course, completely oblivious to the two girls by his side who were not getting along. He was too busy chatting up Pikachu about all of the things they would do once they got out of the forest…with the first and most important item on the list being dinner. Misty rolled her eyes at this once again, but couldn't help but to smirk. Her boyfriend _was _awfully cute, especially when it came to his friendship with Pikachu. He may have been dense, but he was sweet, and that was enough to make Misty forgive him for being so compressed.

After what felt like an eternity to Misty, but was really only about ten minutes, the trio finally reached the end of the forest. Maddie beamed and ran straight out into the sunlight, giggling before turning on her toes and grinning at Ash.

"Oh, you really _are_ the best!" Maddie fussed, causing Misty to scowl. "I can't believe the _champion_ helped me out of that forest, and was brave enough to scare away an Ursaring! All of my friends are going to be _so_ jealous!"

"Glad we could help!" Ash chuckled, obviously including Misty in his statement. The gym leader, of course, wanted nothing to do with the whole mess, but she chose to stay silent and not ruffle any feathers.

"It was great walking through the forest with you guys!" Maddie trilled. "Hopefully we'll meet up again someday!"

"Yeah, and then we can have a battle!" Ash added. Misty resisted the urge to smack him upside the head.

"Bye, Maggie!" Misty finally called, waving at the bewildered female standing before them.

"Well, at least you were _kind of_ close this time…" Maddie sighed before waving at the two and going off her own way.

"She was really nice!" Ash chirped, turning right and heading down that path. Misty's eyes widened and she quickly followed after her boyfriend, keeping pace at his side while maintaining her grumpy expression.

"I bet you're only saying that because she called you brave," Misty accused. "Which was a dumb comment anyway."

"Hey, I _was_ brave!" Ash argued.

"For what?" Misty scoffed. "Keeping an Ursaring away from Maisie?"

"Yeah! And…her name was Maddie, not Maisie."

"Whatever. Still, that's not being brave! If anything, that's being _reckless_."

"Well, _Maddie_ sure didn't think so," Ash hummed.

"I don't give a damn about Maddie!" Misty hissed, causing Ash to take a cautious step back. "Learn to not be so crazy, won't you? There's a difference between being brave and being stupid, after all."

"Yeah, but _that_ was brave!"

"It wouldn't have been so brave if Ursaring had ripped you limb from limb," Misty calmly countered.

"No, it wouldn't have," Ash agreed. "But that didn't happen!"

"I'm just giving you a fair warning is all."

Ash folded his arms across his chest and ignored the tiny sniggers coming from the little electric mouse sitting on his shoulder. "Okay, Misty. If that was being stupid, then what do _you _consider being brave?"

Misty's eyebrows raised in interest. "What? You want _my _opinion?"

"Yeah, I do."

"Alright then," Misty mused. "My idea of being brave is…is someone like me!"

"Someone like _you?_" Ash deadpanned.

"Yeah, someone like me," Misty retorted. "I'm a gym leader! I have to face tons of young trainers every day, and it's my job to try and beat them, while at the same time nurture them and help them to actually want to achieve their goals and dreams! And sometimes, those kids are rough to deal with. _That's _being brave!"

"Hardly," Ash muttered under his breath.

"What was that?!" Misty demanded.

Suddenly, a nearby bush rustled, causing Ash and Misty to stop their arguing and turn their heads towards the shaking shrub. After a few seconds, a small Caterpie came crawling out of the bush and into the middle of the path. Misty let out an ear splitting scream and jumped into Ash's arms, startling both her boyfriend _and_ the little bug type.

"AH! A BUG! GET IT AWAY, GET IT AWAY! ASSSSSH!"

"Oh, yeah, you're a _real_ brave one, Mist," Ash snickered, shaking his head while the red head trembled in his arms.

"SHUT UP AND GET RID OF THAT STUPID BUG RIGHT THIS SECOND!"

"Okay, okay. I'll be _brave_ and do it _just _for you."

* * *

**I'm not used to writing younger Ash and Misty. It's fun, though, to do something a little different :) I like actually having them be sarcastic and in each other's faces and not entirely as mature as in my other stories. I love writing Misty's attitude and Ash's comebacks, especially :P**


	3. Cute

**Here's C, everyone! And this one has a little bit of a nostalgia factor to it. What do I mean by that? Keep reading and find out ;)**

* * *

**Cute**

"I'd better watch out for those kidnappers!"

Ash turned away from the posters of missing children plastered on the wall of the Pokémon Center and turned towards Misty with a bewildered look on his face. They had just arrived in HopHopHop Town, a town with a strange name _and_ even stranger happenings. Already upon arrival, Ash had been mistaken as some woman's son. As it would turn out, the boy who Ash had been mistaken for was missing, along with many other children in the town. Brock, having the infatuation with Officer Jenny that he did, had offered up himself to solve the mystery. Which, of course, meant that Ash and Misty were _also_ obligated to help.

This is what had brought them to the Pokémon Center in the first place.

Brock had figured Nurse Joy might also have some idea as to what was going on, considering she had the same posters as Officer Jenny plastered on the walls of the center. As the group examined the posters, Misty had offhandedly mentioned that she herself should keep an eye out for the supposed kidnappers.

And that's why Ash was so confused.

"Why should _you_ have to be on the lookout for kidnappers?" Ash questioned.

"Because I'm so cute!" Misty replied, holding a hand over her heart. The bizarre look he was throwing Misty must have been obvious, because she was soon furrowing her brow and glaring back at Ash. "What?!"

Ash smirked and slowly shook his head, stroking the fur between Pikachu's ears as the little electric type squealed happily beneath his touch.

"Yeah, you're cute," he grudgingly replied, keeping his eyes away from Misty as he said it. "Guess you'd better watch out."

Misty growled at the boy, but at the same time, her heart sped up in her chest. She knew that Ash had referred to her as "cute" in a sarcastic manner, but still, in her ten-year-old mind, he had _referred to her as cute_! Sarcasm or not, the connection was enough to send Misty's adrenaline racing.

Of course, she couldn't actually let Ash know that. Especially when he knew full well he hadn't said it in a serious fashion. So, instead, she just went with the scowl and said nothing to his face.

**XXX**

That wouldn't be the last time Ash used the word "cute" in relation to Misty. Not by a long shot. Just a few weeks later, in fact, it happened again.

The group had continued their travels and arrived at a small town where a carnival was taking place. Ash and Brock had gotten swept up in all of the excitement, mainly the dancing, and left an embarrassed Misty and Pikachu to their own devices. The girl didn't mind so much. Pikachu was as sweet a Pokémon as they came, and the two would have plenty of fun together going on rides and eating copious amounts of ice cream.

What Misty _did_ mind, however, was getting stuck with helping out a dopey magician by the name of Melvin. She had _tried _to be nice, by approaching the man and asking if he was alright after being unceremoniously shoved into a box by who was apparently his former assistant. That small act of kindness, which Misty ended up regretting immensely, ended with the girl becoming Melvin's new assistant. But _only_ for the day, as she'd warned him.

Pikachu, being the sweet Pokémon that he was, had agreed to help Misty out. His outfit was a simple blue tuxedo jacket with a red bowtie and a blue top hat. It was cute. Much cuter than _Misty's_ outfit.

She was definitely embarrassed by what she'd been forced to wear. A skin tight, white leotard, sleeveless and adorned by two long, translucent Goldeen fins on the back. Her hands and arms were covered by white gloves, while her feet wobbled in a pair of aqua colored heels that matched the jewel in the center of the leotard's chest. Fortunately for Misty, the show didn't seem to hold much appeal, as there were only four people in the audience.

"Thank goodness," Misty had sighed to herself.

Unfortunately, that was before two more audience members arrived.

"Misty, what are you doing up there?"

The flustered red head looked down from the stage and found Ash and Brock to be staring up at her, amused smirks on their faces. Misty, however, was nowhere near as enthused as her friends. If anything, she was only beginning to become _more_ self-conscious.

"Are you part of the show?" Ash continued.

Again, Misty didn't answer. She couldn't. Her whole face had turned bright red, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't find her voice. Ash was still smirking at her, but he seemed to have picked up on her discomfort, because his smirk soon enough became _just _alittle bit softer.

"That's a real nice outfit, Misty," Ash trilled.

Misty growled, the first noise being able to escape her throat in the last few moments. Although her face was still red, in fact even more than when Ash had first opened his big mouth, Misty finally managed to yelp, "What, are you trying to be funny?"

"No," Ash replied earnestly. "You look cute."

Misty, though still glaring, now had one eyebrow raised. She was staring Ash down, carefully studying his face. The smirk was still there, as was the sparkle in his eyes. But…he didn't seem to be as sardonic as he'd been back in HopHopHop Town. He looked as though he wanted to be serious, but just couldn't manage it. Like he was being pulled in two different directions and didn't know which way to go.

_Make up your mind already, Ash. I don't want to wait forever._

**XXX**

"Well, what do you think?"

Ash picked his eyes up from the carpet and, as soon as they were set on Misty, his jaw dropped.

Her sisters had put on a new water ballet, of which Misty was the star. Now that the show was over, there was going to be a lavish after party, and Misty had just spent the last 45 minutes preparing for it. Ash had been annoyed due to the long wait, but as soon as he saw Misty, all of that irritation was quickly washed away.

She had changed into a floor length, strapless gown that was aqua in color; darker at the top and fading into a lighter shade towards the bottom. Her hair had been curled and pulled to the side of her head, looking far more formal than her typical side ponytail. A matching set of diamond necklace and bracelet were wrapped around her neck and wrist, while her bright green eyes had been illuminated by aqua eye shadow with a slight hint of glitter to it.

"Whoa," Ash breathed so quietly that Misty couldn't even hear him. To her, it just looked like his jaw was still dropped.

"Well?" Misty repeated.

"You look…you look cute," Ash replied, his eyes still flickering from Misty's head all the way down to the bottom of her dress.

Misty narrowed her eyes and bore them into Ash, who seemed to be taken off guard by the red head's reaction. "Are you being _sarcastic?_"

"What? No!" Ash cried, rapidly shaking his head. "We're not…we're not kids anymore, Mist! I'm not trying to be funny, I swear! You really are cute!"

Misty's angry expression melted into one of admiration. Her cheeks turned a very delicate shade of pink, and she gently tilted her head to the side.

"Well then…thank you!" Misty giggled in response.

"Actually, maybe you're _not_ cute…" Ash murmured, causing Misty's eyes to widen.

"Why you little-"

"Like I said, we're not kids anymore," Ash interrupted, getting to his feet and moving closer and closer to Misty until he could take her hands into his own. "I think it might be time we move on from cute."

Misty's face contorted into one of bewilderment, almost as though she were hurt. Ash, however, was wearing a very different expression. His was one of assurance and what could only be described as love.

"I think you look _beautiful_," Ash finished, his smile widening as he said the last word.

"Beautiful?" Misty repeated, a small giggle escaping her lips as her whole face lit up. Ash simply nodded in response, while Misty blushed and sheepishly looked away. "I think I might like that even _more_ than cute…"

* * *

**The first part is referring to the episode "Hypno's Naptime!" The "I'd better watch out because I'm cute" actually comes from the original Japanese version. In the dub, Misty says she'll be on a poster one day as a movie star, and Ash tells her she will if they're horror movies. Needless to say, I like the Japanese version of that scene a lot better ;)**

**The second part is referring to the episode "March of the Exeggutor Squad" which is an overall awesome episode. That Ash and Misty scene at the magic show is great.**

**And, of course, the last part is entirely original :)**


	4. Diamond

**I couldn't come up with a word for D, so I asked my Mom to give me a random word that started with D. The first word she gave me was "dog." Well...this is Pokémon, so that's not gonna work. The second word she gave me was "diamond." So, I came up with this :P**

**I'm gonna guess that Ash and Misty are around 19 in this chapter.**

* * *

**Diamond**

Ash couldn't _help_ but to walk around with the world's biggest smile on his face.

He had a great job as the Kanto Champion, and was currently training to challenge the Pokémon Master for his title. He had tons of fans and made a healthy living. His Pokémon were the best battle partners a guy could have possibly asked for, and best of all, he had the most beautiful girlfriend in the entire world.

Life certainly was good, and Ash couldn't help but to feel as though the weight of the world was far off of his shoulders. He was as happy as could be.

"So, Misty, when are you expecting that diamond?"

Ash skidded to a halt and allowed his eyes to widen out of shock. Pikachu, who had been perched atop his trainer's shoulders, allowed his ears to twitch as he leaned down to stare at Ash.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu murmured.

"Shh!" Ash scolded the mouse, pressing himself against the wall next to the doorway that led into the lobby of the Cerulean City gym.

"I don't know, Daisy."

"Well, haven't you been waiting like…_forever _for it?"

"I guess so, but I can't rush things. It's out of my control."

"Not if you put it _into _your control!"

"What do you mean?"

Ash bit his lip and peered into the room without making his face fully visible. He was able to see Daisy and Misty in the room; Daisy sitting behind the lobby desk and filing her nails while Misty was resting her elbows on the counter. She was still dressed from her training session: in skin tight, lime green spandex shorts and a printed sports bra with a blue and green windbreaker thrown over the skimpy ensemble. Normally, Ash would've been turned on by such a sight, but he was currently too preoccupied with the conversation going on between the two sisters.

"Just get extra bossy," Daisy sighed as though it were obvious. "You know, kick and scream and carry on. You're good at all of that, aren't you?"

"Thanks," Misty bit sarcastically as she scowled at the blonde.

"Don't mention it!" Daisy giggled, obviously having missed her youngest sister's acerbity.

"It just doesn't seem right to me," Misty murmured, resting her head in her hand.

"It may not be _right_, but sometimes when you want something done, you've got to do it yourself," Daisy concluded, waving her nail file in the air as she spoke. "Men don't understand anything, I swear."

"You do have a point," Misty finally admitted, lowering her hand and tilting her head to the side. "Guess that's what I'll have to do if I want to get the ring."

"Oh my gosh, you're _finally_ taking advice from your big sister!" Daisy squealed, causing both Ash _and_ Misty to wince. "I'm ordering Chinese food to celebrate!"

"Yeah, you do that," Misty muttered as she turned away from the desk.

Heart now pounding in his chest, Ash darted in the opposite direction, back towards the same front door he'd just walked through minutes earlier. The two glass panels slid apart and allowed Ash entrance into the outdoors, where he stopped only two feet in front of the building before bending at the knees and leaning down to try and catch his breath.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu repeated.

"Oh man, Misty wants me to _propose_ to her!" Ash gasped. "I don't know if I'm ready for that yet!"

"Pika pika-chu," Pikachu reasoned with the frantic young man.

"But I don't want Misty to break up with me!" Ash moaned. "I love her too much! Oh, what do I _do_?"

"Ash, what are you doing out here?"

The champion gasped dramatically and whipped around, staring at Misty with such a terrified expression that it threw the gym leader completely off guard.

"Jeez, Ash, you look like you just saw a ghost," Misty muttered. "Do I really look that hideous today?"

"No, no!" Ash cried, waving his hands in front of himself. "Of course not! You look beautiful! You _always_ look beautiful, Mist!"

"Uh…right," Misty drawled, still confused by her boyfriend's flustered disposition. "Anyway, Daisy's ordering Chinese food for dinner. Do you want to come inside and look at the menu?"

"Yeah, sure, why not!" Ash laughed nervously. "It's just dinner, right? I love food! Like…_love_ it!"

"Are they giving you some new energy drink, Ketchum?" Misty demanded with a raised eyebrow. "Because, if I were you, I'd stop drinking it."

"I'll look into it," Ash muttered, hanging his head in apparent shame.

"Well, it's nothing to beat yourself up over," Misty comforted her boyfriend in a bewildered manner. "You live and learn. Maybe you just need some food in your system. Come on."

Ash bit his lip once again and nodded his head, following Misty back into the gym. For once in his life, however, Ash couldn't even _think _about food.

All he could think about was potentially becoming an engaged man by the end of the week.

**XXX**

"…what?!"

"Exactly what I said."

Brock stared at his best friend in complete and utter shock. Ash, on the other hand, sat across from the older male with his face buried in his hands.

The two friends had met up at a pub located halfway between Cerulean and Pewter. Ash had called Brock the day before, telling the Pokémon doctor that he needed advice on an important subject. Brock, not wanting to leave Ash alone, agreed to meet up with him and discuss the issue. Now that it was out in the open, however, Brock was a little thrown off.

"You do know I've never had to deal with this before, right?" Brock questioned seriously. "I mean, I have in my dreams, of course, but real life…"

"I know you haven't, but I need advice," Ash groaned, finally picking his head up. "I can't go to Mom, because she'll freak out and get all excited and it'll just be bad. And if I tell any of our _female_ friends, they'll just go blabbing to Misty. Hell, even _Cilan_ might open his mouth! You're the only one I know I can trust, Brock."

Brock smiled at the younger male. "That means a lot, Ash."

"So do my male parts, and I don't need Misty cutting them off," Ash grumbled.

"Aw, you had to ruin such a nice moment," Brock sighed.

"Sorry. I'm just stressed."

"I know you are," Brock comforted with a smile on his face. "I was just teasing. So, Misty's expecting a ring, huh?"

"That's what she and Daisy made it sound like."

"Well…you love Misty, don't you?" Brock asked.

"Of course I do, more than anything," Ash replied. "But…I don't know if I'm ready to be married yet. We're still so young!"

"Right," Brock pressed. "But…you _love_ her?"

"Yes…" Ash murmured, shifting his eyes from side-to-side.

"Then I think you should buy a ring and hold onto it," Brock settled. "You know you love Misty, and you'd like to be married to her someday. If she starts to get too impatient, you get down on one knee and propose. Besides, there's no rule on how long an engagement is supposed to last. Just because you and Misty are getting engaged doesn't mean you have to get married the next day! Some couples are engaged for _years_ before they actually get married!"

"I always know I can count on you, Brock," Ash chuckled with a smile on his face. "You made me feel so much better, just like that!"

"I try," Brock sighed laughingly.

"So…what kind of a ring do I buy for Misty?" Ash continued, his eyes flickering with confusion.

"Don't you worry about that, Ash!" Brock cried in a determined fashion, pounding his fist just once against the table and alarming both Ash and Pikachu, who was currently sitting beneath the table eating out of a ketchup bottle. "I'm here to help!"

**XXX**

That same afternoon, Ash returned to the gym with his wallet a little lighter and his pants pocket a little heavier.

He had chosen a ring, with the assistance of Brock, that he figured was perfect for Misty. Reaching into his pocket, Ash pulled out the black velvet box and flipped it open, examining the piece of jewelry that was nestled inside: a ten karat white gold band with two rows of round diamonds surrounding a larger center diamond. It had cost Ash quite a pretty penny, but it _was _very beautiful, and Ash just knew Misty would love it.

Or…at least he _hoped_ she would.

The front doors to the gym slid open, and Ash hastily stuffed the ring box back in his pocket. As soon as he had the box hidden, Misty emerged from inside, her whole face looking quite angry.

"Hey there, Mist," Ash greeted timidly. "What's up?"

"I'm _furious_, that's what's up!" Misty stormed, causing Ash's eyes to widen. "Do you know how long I've been waiting, Ash? _DO YOU_?"

"Uh…I…"

"I swear, _someone _is going to get an _earful _if I don't get this thing by the end of the day!" Misty seethed.

Ash almost choked on air. _The end of the day?_ He was going to have to _propose to Misty by the end of the day?!_

_Maybe I should just do it now, _Ash thought alarmingly to himself. _Because she _really _doesn't sound happy, and she's not going to be until I give her what she wants!_

"Misty…" Ash began slowly, bringing the red head's harsh glare back onto himself. "Um…I was just wondering if-"

Just as Ash was sneaking his hand into his pocket, and before he could get down on one knee, a truck pulled up in front of the gym, its horn causing Ash to jump nearly five feet in the air. Misty looked over her boyfriend's shoulder and watched as the delivery man approached her with a large, almost flat cardboard box.

"Package for Misty?" He asked, reading off of the box's mailing label.

"It's about time!" Misty snapped, taking the box from the visibly frightened worker. Remembering it wasn't _him_ she was mad at, Misty smiled sweetly at the stranger and crooned, "thank you!"

"Uh…don't mention it…" the man murmured before running back to the safety of his truck.

Ash watched the man sprint, and then looked back at Misty, who was now holding the package beneath her arm with a big smile on her face. "What's in the box, Mist?"

"It's my diamond!" Misty giggled, leading Ash's eyebrows to shoot up his forehead.

"Wh-what?!" Ash stammered.

"During a battle a few weeks ago, one of the challenger's Machamp misfired its focus blast and destroyed the diamond-shaped ring that was part of the new water ballet my sisters have been planning," Misty explained. "It was hanging right above the pool along with the heart, star, and circle shaped rings. And, whenever a challenger's Pokémon destroys gym property, it's the League's responsibility to replace it."

"But…what…huh…" Ash panicked.

"I asked them to send us a replacement ring right after that battle, and they'd been slacking on it ever since," Misty sighed. "I finally got fed up and asked Daisy what to do. She told me to start complaining constantly, and that seemed to do the trick, because here's my ring!"

She motioned towards the box, not even noticing that Ash's jaw had been dropped for the past five minutes and refused to go back up.

"My sisters are going to be _so_ excited that I finally got it!" Misty squealed. "Now they can get the show back on the road!"

Before Ash could formulate any words, Misty turned around and ran back into the gym, calling excitedly for her three older sisters. Ash, on the other hand, could only hang his head and moan desolately while Pikachu laughed at his trainer's misery.

"I wonder what the return policy on engagement rings is…" Ash muttered.

* * *

**For one that I didn't think of in advance, I really like this one :P I could see this as an actual episode, if the characters in Pokémon would actually age...siiiigh.**


	5. Easy

**Letter E, ready to go! I'm really having fun and knocking these out of the park ^^**

* * *

**Easy**

"Ash, could you take me for a smoothie?"

Ash blinked and looked up from the newspaper, eyeing the young woman was now hovering over him with a sweet smile on her face.

"Misty, I-"

"_Pleeease?_" Misty crooned, widening her eyes and sticking her lips out in a pouty fashion.

"Sure!" Ash squawked, leading Misty to smirk. "Let's go!"

The gym leader giggled and began striding towards the door to get her jacket off of the hook. Ash raised an eyebrow, not understanding what was so funny, but still got up and followed his girlfriend regardless.

"Pikachu!" Ash called, cupping his hands around his mouth. "We're going out for smoothies! Come on!"

Pikachu poked his head out from the top of the stairs and scowled at Ash. Once again, the young man was confused as to why he had received _that_ specific reaction.

"Pika!" Pikachu groaned.

"Whaddya mean no?!" Ash cried.

"Pika-chu, pikapi," Pikachu grumbled, shaking his head back and forth so his ears bobbed.

"You're tired?" Ash repeated, leading Pikachu to nod. "But we're going to have to do training when I get back! We have that evaluation next week!"

"Pi-ka Pikapika," Pikachu whined.

Ash sighed and ran a hand through his untamable raven locks. "Well, I guess if you're _really_ that tired…"

"Pi!" Pikachu chirped, his ears standing at full attention as he spun around and headed back towards whichever room he had just been napping in.

"Guess that'll just have to wait," Ash murmured to himself as he followed after a highly amused Misty through the front door.

**XXX**

After getting their tasty drinks, Misty urged Ash to take a slightly longer walk with her to enjoy their smoothies in the fresh air instead of inside the juice shop. Ash wasn't entirely big on the idea; the walk to the shop had already been long enough, in his mind.

But then Misty put on her little pout again, and Ash just couldn't refuse.

So, they made their way down to Pallet Town Park and sat on a bench in a quiet, secluded area that was surrounded by nothing more than trees. Ash always felt a little empty without his best buddy Pikachu sitting on his shoulder, but now that he and Misty were dating, it wasn't so bad to be without him. Alone time with Misty had quickly become one of Ash's favorite things to do.

"So, I was thinking that tomorrow, we could go shopping," Misty suggested.

"Shopping?" Ash finally repeated after taking a long sip of his pineapple smoothie. "What _kind_ of shopping?"

"_Clothes_ shopping," Misty giggled gently, swirling her smoothie straw around in its cup.

"I don't need clothes!" Ash whined.

"But _I_ do," Misty tried.

"You have an entire closet full of clothes! I've seen it!"

"Yeah, but I need _more _clothes," Misty valiantly continued. "It's almost fall, after all. Of the new stuff is out! Besides, you might find something cute for yourself."

Ash turned his head and gave Misty an incredulous glare. "I _don't _dress _cute_."

"Fine. _Handsome_. Whatever you want to call it," Misty sighed with a roll of her eyes. "So, what do you say?"

"But I'll be at work all day tomorrow," Ash groaned. "Training for that stupid evaluation."

"I meant _afterwards_. I have the gym too, you know."

"I don't know…"

"Please?" Misty pleaded, batting her full eyelashes at the already conflicted boy. He tried to ignore the action, but it was pretty hard to do when Misty was already halfway onto his lap.

"Oh, fine," Ash grumbled, leading Misty to whoop victoriously.

"I knew I'd get you to say yes!" Misty cheered.

"How'd ya' know that?" Ash demanded, raising a wry eyebrow.

"Because you're so _easy_, that's how!" Misty giggled, leaning back against the bench as she began to sip her smoothie once again.

"I am _not_ easy!" Ash refuted, his jaw dropping at such a suggestion. "I haven't even let you into my pants yet!"

"Arceus, not like _that!_" Misty shrieked, her entire face turning red with embarrassment. "I meant easy to _persuade_. And not into…that!"

"Oh…" Ash murmured before furrowing his brow angrily once again. "I am _not!_"

"Yes you are."

"Are not!"

"Are too."

"Are not!"

"Only children argue this way, Ash," Misty chided the boy as though he were nothing more than a child himself. "Besides, you know I'm right."

"You're not right!" Ash screeched.

"Whatever you say, buddy," Misty snickered, obviously getting a kick out of her boyfriend's apparent aggravation on the subject.

"I am _not_ easy! And I'll prove it to you!" Ash stormed.

"How are you going to prove it to me?" Misty sighed laughingly. "You can't even say no to Pikachu!"

"You'll see," Ash murmured, dramatically squeezing his smoothie cup. "The _next person_ who asks me to do something for them, I'll say no to! Just you wait! That'll _prove_ to you I'm not easy!"

"Oh, _this _should be good," Misty breathed, smirking at her determined boyfriend as she slipped the smoothie straw into the corner of her mouth.

**XXX**

After finishing their smoothies, Ash practically _dragged_ Misty all the way back to his house, anxiously awaiting the first request he would get to do something so he could promptly turn it down.

_She's going to see that I'm not such a pushover! _Ash thought excitedly. _I'll prove Misty wrong, and she'll have no choice but to admit she was wrong! And I know for a fact that there's nothing Misty hates more than being wrong._

Because of his rising fame, Ash had halfway expected someone to ask him for a favor on the way back. An autograph or perhaps some advice. That didn't happen, so Ash decided to just settle for the house. He was expecting Pikachu to be waiting by the door, anyway. Probably going to beg for some treats.

As soon as Ash swung the door open, he spun around and grinned almost manically at his girlfriend, who took a small step back in response.

"Ready to be proven _wrong_, Mist?" Ash trilled as he closed his eyes in bliss.

Misty silently rolled her eyes up as she brushed past Ash, making sure he felt her as she walked on by.

"Ash, could you run to the store and pick up some vegetables for me?"

"Nope!" Ash chirped, his smile growing even wider as he made the refusal. "You can go do that yourself!"

No response.

Still grinning, Ash spun around and opened his eyes, ready to laugh in Misty's face for thinking she could _possibly _trick him into saying yes. What he found, however, was that Misty was no longer in the room, and he was now standing face-to-face with his _very_ angry mother.

"M-Mom?!" Ash squawked.

"What was that, young man?" Delia demanded, her amber eyes glimmering with fury.

"N-nothing!" Ash stammered, his whole face turning red. "I'll run to the market right now and pick up those vegetables for you!"

Before Delia could say anything else, Ash whipped back around and ran right out the door, not even bothering to look back. From the next room over, Misty poked her head in through the doorway and smirked.

"That stupid boy," Misty muttered as she shook her head. "_So_ easy!"

* * *

**Yeah, I always torture Ash. The poor boy :P But he shouldn't talk to his mom that way! Then again, Misty probably shouldn't tease him so much :P**


	6. Flirtatious

**I'm not as fond of this one, but I AM surprised I managed to get letter F done after the day I've had. So, I'm proud of myself for that :P Hopefully you'll all enjoy this one!**

* * *

**Flirtatious**

"Brock, how do I flirt?"

The Pokémon doctor glanced up at his best friend, who was wearing an anxious and bewildered look on his face.

"Well, this isn't awkward at all," Brock muttered.

"I'm serious, Brock," Ash whined. "How do you flirt?"

"Who? Me?" Brock questioned, pointing at himself.

"Uh…not necessarily," Ash murmured, causing Brock to scowl. "I kind of just meant in general."

"How complimentary," Brock seethed, causing Ash to raise an eyebrow. "Why do _you_ need to know how to flirt, anyway? Seems like a pretty random request to me."

"Why would it be random?" Ash chuckled nervously. "I'm a teenage boy! Isn't that _natural _to want to flirt?"

"Not when it's you, Ash," Brock sighed, leading the younger male to frown. "Look, I'm not saying you're _not_ a normal guy. It's just…all you've ever cared about is Pokémon. Now, all of a sudden, you want to know how to attract girls? Uh…we are talking about _girls_, right?"

"Yes!" Ash wailed as his whole face turned red.

Brock smirked and placed his textbook down on the table he was sitting behind, folding his arms across his chest. "Any girl in _particular?_"

"Uh…no?"

"You might need some help with lying, too," Brock snickered, while Ash's blush only grew in intensity. "So, come on. Tell me who it is!"

"Uh…Miffy," Ash mumbled under his breath.

"What?" Brock pressed, leaning forward in his seat.

"MISTY!" Ash cried, immediately covering his mouth after the truth came out. Brock just sat there in what appeared to be shock, although a smile soon grew on his face.

"I knew it," Brock whispered.

"Don't tell anyone," Ash urged, his eyes flashing with fear.

"Relax, Ash, I'm not a jerk," Brock comforted the younger male, still with a smile. "Besides, I'm happy for you! I've been waiting to hear this since you guys were a couple of hot headed ten-year-olds. I'm more than willing to help you out with her."

"Really?" Ash asked, his whole face lighting up at the prospect.

"Sure!" Brock crowed. "In fact, I'm honored that you asked _me_ of all people to help you out! I can include it in my best man speech at the wedding."

"Uh…what wedding?"

"Don't worry about it," Brock chuckled huskily, his eyes glinting with mischievousness. "You just leave it all up to me!"

**XXX**

Misty groaned dramatically and twirled around in a small circle before throwing herself face down on one of the couches in the Cerulean gym lobby.

It had been a long day. She had participated in _five _separate battles; three wins and two loses. The loses had been especially close and heated battles. Misty had much to be proud of, in fact! But, at the moment, she was too tired to care. All she wanted was a nice, long nap. And then some dinner once she was done napping.

Just as she began to doze off, however, she could hear the glass front doors to the gym sliding open, accompanied by a series of footsteps. With her face still buried in the couch cushions, Misty scowled. This was the _last_ thing she'd wanted to put up with after her never ending day.

"The gym's closed!" Misty bit, finally picking her head up. "Get lost!"

"_Ouch_, is that how you're greeting your _friends_ now?"

Misty's eyes widened and she jumped nearly five feet in the air. Regaining her place on the couch, Misty whipped her head around and found herself staring at Ash, who was wearing his typical "smartass" look. That should have pissed Misty off even more, but for some reason, she was quite happy to see the raven haired boy.

Even with that stupid look on his face.

"Oh, sorry, Ash," Misty apologized earnestly. "I thought you were another challenger. I can't deal with anymore gym battles! Not today, anyway. I've had enough. I should take a vacation."

"A vacation?" Ash repeated with a slight purr.

Misty raised a wry eyebrow and pulled her knees up to her chest. "Uh, yeah?"

"Oh, so you could like…totally wear a bathing suit and stuff!" Ash added.

Brock, who was spying on the two from outside the gym, slapped a palm against his face. Already, Ash was proving to be one miserable failure of a student.

"I…already wear a bathing suit here…" Misty lamely replied. Normally, she would've called Ash out for being so dumb, but right about now, she was just too confused to.

"Oh, right," Ash chuckled nervously, a delicate blush gracing his tan cheeks.

Misty sighed and got up from the couch, stretching out her arms and legs as she began to walk towards the lobby desk. Ash gasped and whipped around, looking frantically for Brock through the glass doors. Fortunately, he was peeking over at that very moment, and began to point his finger vehemently at Misty, silently ordering Ash to follow her.

He nodded out of determination and immediately set off after the red head, nearly running into her as he made his way over to the desk a bit too quickly. Once again, Brock merely hung his head in shame.

"Ash, _what _are you doing?" Misty asked plainly as she spun around to face the trainer, tapping her fingertips against the desktop.

"Uh…just…checking you out!" Ash trilled, as though that was a perfectly normal comment.

"_WHAT?!_" Misty shrieked, self-consciously backing herself up until she was _sure_ her behind was pressed against the desk and out of Ash's eyesight.

"No, no, not like that!" Ash cried, panic rushing through his veins. "I mean…uh…what I meant to say was…I want to arrange you and I! Like the alphabet!"

Misty's considerable blush vanished as she instead raised a single eyebrow once again, completely confounded by her friend's strange behavior.

"It was supposed to be _'if I could rearrange the alphabet, I'd put you and I together'_!" Brock hissed from outside. "Damnit, Ash."

"Did you hit your head on the way over here?" Misty asked in a very serious fashion.

"No," Ash innocently replied.

"Are you positive?" Misty pressed. "Because you sure are acting strange…"

"I'm not acting strange!" Ash argued. "I'm just trying to see if you fell from Heaven!"

Misty _winced_ at that one. Ash did too, as a matter of fact. Coming out of his mouth, it sounded so sickeningly…sweet. It made him nauseous. Ash was beginning to feel like maybe Brock had set him up for failure.

"Ash, is someone feeding you lines?" Misty queried.

"No!" Ash vehemently denied.

"Really?" Misty hummed, striding up next to Ash and looking in both of his ears, much to the trainer's aggravation. "Hmm…I don't see any wires."

"This isn't a spy operation!" Ash shouted.

"Maybe not, but those pickup lines sure need work," Misty scoffed, much to Ash's horror.

"What…uh…those weren't-"

"Oh, Ash, of _course_ they were," Misty sighed. "You took all of the lamest lines known to man and screwed up each and every one. Who taught you that crap in the first place? Brock?"

Ash furrowed his brow as Misty began to laugh _hysterically, _obviously finding her little "theory" to be quite hilarious. Not wanting to give himself away, Ash too began to chuckle along with the gym leader, albeit more nervously and hesitantly than she was.

"Heh, yeah…good one, Mist!" Ash choked out.

From outside, Brock was lying on the ground, curled up in a ball and looking rather dejected. Pikachu, who had been placed under the man's care while Ash went about his little mission, sympathetically patted the doctor atop his head.

"Those lines aren't crap," Brock whimpered to himself. "They're classics!"

"Pika-chu, pikapika," Pikachu sighed, shaking his head.

* * *

**Basically, Ash sucks at learning when it doesn't involve Pokémon, Misty's not an idiot, and Brock is just a sad, strange little man (someone guess where that's from and make my day! I'll even give you a shout out next chapter!)**


	7. Girlfriend

**Okay, I'm so glad all you guys knew where that line was from (Toy Story, of course!) I would have been disappointed if you guys didn't know :P So, shout outs to everyone who knew it: Vondrakenhof, theverve51, untitledmind, jntvfreak24, Max Saturday, ShiningKnightess, general andrew, Hotspot the 626th, and PinkStar375!**

**Phew, that was a lot. Here, have letter G as a nice little reward ^^**

* * *

**Girlfriend**

"Do you know who I am?"

"Mmhm."

"I'm Ash's girlfriend."

"Yep."

"His _girlfriend_!"

"I got it."

Misty scoffed and pulled back, folding her arms across her chest. She was scowling down at May, who was sitting curled up into a ball at the end of the couch and reading from a coordinator magazine.

"Why aren't you all excited?" Misty demanded to know.

"I _was_ excited! When you first told me," May muttered. "But it's been this way for almost two weeks now. You still expect me to jump up and down like a madwoman over it?"

"Dawn does," Misty grumbled pitifully.

"Yeah, but that's _Dawn_," May giggled, finally looking up from her magazine. "We could be seventy years into the future and you'd be married, and Dawn would _still_ be fussing over this."

"True," Misty mused before sighing and sitting down on the opposite side of the couch. "I just…I don't know. It's so surreal. I never thought I would actually be Ash's…_girlfriend!_"

"Me either," May agreed.

"That's such a strange combination of words," Misty murmured, sitting back against the couch as she thought it over. "I have to keep saying it out loud, otherwise I don't believe it."

"I've noticed."

Misty once again glared at May, who couldn't help but to smirk from behind her magazine. The red head sighed and shook her head. She could never be mad at the brunette. May was a very good friend, despite her teasing nature and sometimes overly girly tendencies. Misty got along with her very well, because just like herself, May could often be very sarcastic.

"Well, can you?" Misty pressed, refusing to give up on the subject.

"You want my honest answer?" May trilled.

"Of course I do."

"I'm still pretty stunned," May admitted, finally closing her magazine and placing it on her lap. "Especially because Ash asked you first!"

"I know, right?" Misty shrieked, jumping up and down in her seat.

"I guess I just keep trying to pass it off because I know I can't freak out about it all the time," May laughed. "I'm trying to make it feel like a normal, everyday thing so I can treat it that way. But it's so exciting!"

"Now _I_ have a boyfriend, and _you_ have a boyfriend…" Misty mused. "We can go on double dates!"

"But what would Ash and Drew talk about?" May questioned.

Misty shrugged, barely taking any time to think. "I don't care, they're boys, they'll figure something out."

"True," May hummed. "Even though Drew has an easier time talking to me and other girls than other guys."

Misty raised an eyebrow and tilted her head, indicating to May that she was confused.

"Drew likes to talk about hair," May explained, tugging at one of her strands of brunette hair. "Like…a lot. It's his favorite thing other than Contests."

Misty smirked and began to giggle, which May soon joined in on. While the girls were laughing over Drew's apparent obsessions, the front door opened, and Delia walked in with Mimey, both of them holding armfuls of groceries.

"What are you girls giggling about?" Delia trilled.

"Nothing really," Misty sighed airily. "We're mostly just talking about how we can't believe that I'm Ash's girlfriend now."

"Oh, isn't it amazing?!" Delia warbled, her amber eyes lighting up. "When I found out, I swear I could've cried! Truthfully, I never thought Ash would be able to do something like that. But thank goodness I was wrong!"

"Mime mime!" Mimey chimed in.

"Even Mimey is impressed!" Misty giggled.

"This has to be one of the biggest miracles I've ever witnessed," Delia confessed, quickly walking into the kitchen to put down the groceries she was carrying. "Truly! This one ranks pretty high. After Ash being born and making it through every single journey without breaking a single bone, of course.

"You know, I don't think there's any one in the _entire world_ who's not impressed or shocked by the whole situation," May mused.

The front door of the house opened up once again, but this time, it was Ash who stepped in. He had just returned from a run, as evidenced by his sweaty face, ruffled hair, and labored breathing. Pikachu was lazily draped over his trainer's shoulder, looking just as tired as the human boy.

"Hey, guys," Ash greeted through a pant.

May, Misty, and Delia all grinned deliriously at him, in such a fashion that Ash quickly became bewildered…and somewhat frightened.

"Uh…is everything…okay in here?" Ash stammered.

"Just fine, dear!" Delia practically sang. "I'm going to start dinner for everyone!"

As she disappeared fully into the kitchen, Ash turned his full attention onto Misty and May, who were both still wearing their overzealous expressions.

"Uh…"

"Welcome back, _boyfriend!_" Misty giggled strongly.

Ash simply blinked his chocolate brown eyes. "…thanks?"

"Aren't you going to give your _girlfriend_ a kiss?" May teased.

"Sure, after I wash up…" Ash murmured, slowly making his way towards the stairs. "I'm kind of gross right now."

As he made his way up the steps, he could hear Misty and May squealing together like a couple of schoolgirls. Raising an eyebrow, Ash sped up his pace, not wanting to stick around the craziness for any longer than he had to.

"Jeez, all you do is ask someone to be your girlfriend and everyone goes _nuts!_" Ash muttered to himself. "I don't get it."

* * *

**Aw, Ash, everyone is just excited because you're so dense! Silly boy :P**


	8. Hat

**Every time I can't come up with a word, I ask my family for help. So, my sister's suggestion for H? "Horse." Just like when my Mom's suggestion for D was "dog." Obviously, those things won't work when it comes to a POKEMON story XD**

**Then my Dad suggested "hat," and I feel like a moron for not thinking of that earlier. Or on my own. Either way...it was a good choice XD**

* * *

**Hat**

"MISTY!"

Ash received no response as he burst through the front door. He had just woken up from taking a nap outside, and when he had come to, he'd realized that something _very_ important was missing. Something that he never let out of his sight.

"MISTY!" Ash barked again, eyes narrowing as he poked his head into the kitchen, and then the living room. "Come on, I KNOW you're in here somewhere!"

Charging up the stairs, Ash continued to look into each and every room that lined the hallway, from the bathroom to the linen closet to their shared bedroom.

And his wife was nowhere to be found.

"Ugh, _Misty!_" Ash groaned, allowing himself to sink onto the end of the bed.

"Psy…duck…psy…duck…"

Ash picked his head up from where he had buried it in his hands, and found Psyduck to be waddling straight towards him. This confused the young man, as he knew for a fact that his wife very rarely let Psyduck out of his poke ball, never mind allowing him to roam through the house.

"Psyduck, what are you doing?" Ash asked.

Psyduck blinked and tilted his head before making a left turn and continuing to walk through the room.

"Of course not," Ash muttered, rubbing at his temples.

"Psyduck! Get back here you dopey duck!"

Ash once again picked up his head to see Misty rushing into the room, an obvious look of aggravation set onto her otherwise beautiful face. He knew she was looking for Psyduck, but now that he had her in his sight, Ash was not about to let Misty go so easily.

"There you are," Ash groaned, getting to his feet.

"What's up?" Misty murmured. "You were looking for me?"

"Yeah!" Ash sighed.

"Why do you sound so frustrated?" Misty queried.

"Because I was taking a nap outside, underneath the big oak tree," Ash explained, his brow quickly furrowing in frustration as he continued. "And, when I woke up, my hat was missing!"

"So?" Misty quipped.

"I think someone stole it!" Ash cried.

"Oh, no one stole it," Misty giggled at the notion. "I got rid of it!"

"WHAT?!" Ash screamed, causing Misty to flinch.

"Exactly what I said," Misty murmured. "I got rid of it."

Ash's jaw dropped, and his eyes widened as his face paled. "Why in the hell would you throw out my hat?"

"I didn't say _throw out_, I said _got rid of_," Misty rectified. "That's two different things."

"No it isn't!" Ash wailed. "_Why _would you do that?!"

"Because I'm sick and tired of seeing you with that tattered hat on your head!" Misty argued. "You're an adult, Ash. It's time to let the hat go!"

"I will _never_ let my hat go!" Ash wailed. "Not until the day I die! I swore that the first time I put it on!"

"First of all, I didn't trash your first hat, so I don't see why you're getting so upset," Misty grumbled. "Besides, you made that little promise to yourself when you were like…_ten_, so who cares? You're grown up now. You've got more important things to focus on than wearing a dumb hat!"

"My hat is _not_ dumb!" Ash yelled, a frown appearing on his face as he put his head down. "At least…it _wasn't_."

Before Misty could say anything, Ash brushed past her and walked out of the room, rushing down the stairs so his wife would have no chance of catching up to him. Sighing, Misty placed a palm against her forehead and shook her head, inwardly cursing herself.

"Psy…psy…"

Misty opened her eyes and looked over towards her dresser, where she found Psyduck repeatedly walking into the side of the bureau.

"You've never helped before, so why would you start now?" Misty muttered under her breath.

**XXX**

Later that day, when it came time for dinner, Ash never came into the kitchen to eat. Misty was surprised _only_ because she knew how much Ash loved food. Otherwise, she wasn't exactly shocked. She had never seen Ash _that _upset before, _especially_ not with her.

Misty had been hoping, deep down, that Ash would at least come downstairs once he smelt dinner, because she had a surprise for him. That didn't seem to be anywhere near happening, however. So, with a definitive huff (because Misty, despite feeling bad, _was_ still a stubborn young woman who hated being in the wrong), the gym leader scooped up the bag that had been placed by the leg of her chair and stood up, making her way towards the staircase that would bring her upstairs.

She immediate headed for the bedroom, having a gut feeling that was where Ash had hidden himself away to sulk. As soon as Misty opened the door, she found her husband lying face first on the bed, the only visible movement of his body being the deep rise and fall of his back and shoulders every time he breathed.

"Ash, aren't you hungry?" Misty tried.

"No," Ash muttered desolately.

"Well…that's a first," Misty giggled softly. Ash didn't respond. Sighing, Misty walked over to the side of the bed and gently poked her husband's side, causing him to groan. "Ash…come on. I don't like to see you moping around like this."

Ash chose to ignore her. When she poked him again, he rolled over into the center of the bed. Rolling her eyes, Misty sat down on the edge, where he had just been lying before dejectedly moving over.

"I'm really sorry about what I did to your hat," Misty murmured, her eyes lowering to her hands. "I didn't realize just how much your hats mean to you. I might not necessarily _agree _with it, but I can respect it. So…I'm really, really sorry."

Ash finally turned his head to glance up at Misty, although he still didn't look too impressed with her. Misty had been expecting that, so she showed him a delicate smile and sat the bag she'd carried upstairs on her lap.

"I brought a little surprise for you," Misty trilled. "Do you want to open it?"

"What, do you think you can just buy me off?" Ash scoffed.

"No!" Misty cried, sounding almost hurt by the accusation. "I just felt so bad about tossing the hat that I wanted to try and make it up to you!"

Ash narrowed his eyes, still looking rather skeptical about the whole thing. Sighing dramatically, Misty held the bag out towards her husband, allowing it to dangle right in his face.

"Why don't you just see what's inside and find out for yourself?" Misty quipped.

Ash blinked, his harsh look melting away as curiosity took over. With an uneasy hand, Ash gently took the bag from his wife and sat up, digging into the inside and pulling out the object that had been stored within: a brand new, bright red hat with a stylized black poke ball peeking out from the side.

"Whoa," Ash breathed, shuffling the hat from hand-to-hand as he meticulously studied the headwear.

"It's red," Misty awkwardly piped up, nervously rubbing her upper arm as Ash glanced over at her. "Your favorite color."

"Is that why you picked it?" Ash chuckled.

"I guess…" Misty murmured. "All hats kind of look the same to me."

Ash grinned and pulled the new cap on over his messy black hair, laughing again once it was on. "Well…you did a good job! This one is really nice."

Misty grimaced slightly and turned her head to look at Ash. "Are you humoring me?"

"Of course not," Ash earnestly assured the gym leader. "It really is a nice hat! In fact, I think I like this one better than the one you got rid of."

An embarrassed blush graced Misty's face as those words left Ash's mouth. "I'm still sorry…"

"No, _I'm_ the one who should be sorry," Ash admitted, much to Misty's surprise. "I shouldn't have thrown a fit over something as stupid as a hat. I don't want us to be upset with one another because of something dumb. I want us to be upset with each other for _smart _reasons!"

Misty couldn't help but to smile at that. "You're an idiot."

"You're right, I'd rather us not be mad at each other at all," Ash snickered. "But you know what I mean."

"I do," Misty hummed, slowly nodding her head. "So…are you hungry yet?"

"I've been starving ever since our argument," Ash groaned, jumping off the bed and grinning at his amused wife. "Come on! Let's go eat!"

"Sounds good to me," Misty giggled, getting to her own feet and walking towards the door. "And if you're a good boy and eat _all_ of your dinner, I'll have a _special _dessert waiting for you!"

The flirtatious wink Misty finished off her promise with caused Ash's face to turn red and his heart to flutter eagerly in his chest.

"Okay, so being an adult is _kind of_ fun," Ash whispered to himself before grinning deliriously once again and following after his gorgeous wife.

* * *

**Of course arguing over a hat is dumb. But we all know how much Ash loves his hats! I think it's fine, as long as Misty doesn't touch the OFFICIAL Pokémon League hat ;)**

**Also, yes, Psyduck didn't really serve a purpose. He was just there to bring Ash and Misty face-to-face...and to be stupid :P**


	9. Intensity

**I've got I for you guys right here! I couldn't write it up yesterday because I had a family thing. And I had to watch the Teen Choice Awards. They sucked. They always do. But, when Bridgit Mendler, Demi Lovato, the cast of Glee, and the cast of Dance Moms are in one room, you don't say no.**

**Anyway, no one cares XD I don't blame you. You just want chapter I! Well, here it is! So...enjoy :D**

* * *

**Intensity**

"Oof. Man, I'm _exhausted_."

"Pi-ka."

Ash hadn't even been able to make it to the couch before passing out in front of the doorway. He lay sprawled out on the floor, on his stomach, with his arms and legs stretched out to the sides. Pikachu, his loyal companion, was just as tired as his trainer, and chosen to collapse in a similar position on Ash's back.

"Oh, good, you're home! What do you want for-Ash, get off of the floor!"

The Pokémon Master groaned and managed to turn his head, glancing up at an obviously irritated Misty.

"Why?" Ash moaned.

"Because you're lying _on the floor!_" Misty exclaimed, motioning towards her husband's limp body.

"So?"

"It's a safety hazard!"

"You saw me, you didn't trip," Ash calmly sighed.

"But what if I hadn't?" Misty rhetorically questioned. "I could've broken my neck!"

"Well, good thing you saw me," Ash playfully quipped.

"I don't even understand why you do this _every single day_," Misty droned as she rolled her eyes. "Your job's not that hard!"

_This _got Ash up. He jumped to his feet and glared at Misty, who cocked an eyebrow and stared right back at her incredulous husband.

"My job is _extremely _hard!" Ash argued.

"Oh, yeah, because battling _all day_ is _so_ bad," Misty bit sarcastically. "That's what _I_ do, and you never see me passed out on the floor!"

"I do a hell of a lot more than just battle!" Ash contended. "I have to train, and I always have _tons_ of paperwork to do, and media interviews…"

"Oh, wah wah, being a celebrity is _so_ hard," Misty growled.

Ash furrowed his brow and folded his arms across his broad chest, causing Pikachu to sigh and bow his ears. Pikachu knew that every time his trainer took that stance, something bad was going to happen. Or at least come out of his mouth.

"I bet you couldn't last _one day_ as the Pokémon Master," Ash bargained.

Misty smirked at this. The stubborn gym leader _loved_ herself a good bet. Especially when it was one she knew she could win. "I bet I could."

"Okay, then let's find out," Ash retaliated. "Tomorrow, you'll take off from the gym and come to work with me. You'll do _everything _that I do, and by the end of the day, you'll be _even more_ burnt out than me."

"You sure are confident in yourself, aren't you?" Misty murmured.

"I'm not any different than you are," Ash remarked.

"Alright then," Misty breathed, grinning at her confident husband. "I'll do it. And I'll _prove_ to you that your job isn't as tough as you think it is."

**XXX**

The next morning, as Ash was preparing his training duffel with energy drinks and snacks, Misty appeared downstairs with a huge smile on her face. When Ash looked over his shoulder and saw her, he raised an eyebrow and threw her a disbelieving look.

"What?" Misty trilled.

"You can't go to work dressed like _that_," Ash commented.

Misty frowned and looked down at her outfit. She had dressed so nicely for the day, in a fitted white tank lined with black lace and a skin tight, mid-thigh length black skirt along with towering white heels.

"Why?" Misty whined. "Do I look bad?"

"No, you look extremely sexy, as a matter of fact," Ash complimented, causing his wife to smile. "But, if you think you can do what _I do_ in _those _clothes, you're crazy."

"Seriously?" Misty muttered miserably.

"Mmhm," Ash hummed.

"Then what am I supposed to wear?" Misty complained.

"Workout clothes," Ash replied simply. "Unless, of course, you don't mind running in high heels and lifting in tight skirts."

"Lifting?" Misty repeated, one eyebrow shooting up out of terrified interest.

"Yeah, you know, like weights and stuff," Ash explained, completely unaffected by Misty's look of horror. "I've got to keep up with my muscles somehow!"

Biting her lip, Misty grabbed the railing of the staircase and began to trudge back up the steps. "Come on, Misty. You want to win…you _have_ to win…"

**XXX**

_Why does the road to winning have to suck so much?_

Misty's eyes had widened as soon as Ash had brought her to the weight room at the Indigo Plateau's training facility. Of course, she exercised on her own. Misty liked to swim and run. But this weight room was something else. All of the treadmills, stepping and cycling machines, and free weights…all reserved for the top trainers in the Pokémon world.

And she was supposed to use each and every one of them.

"So…I can just go on one of the bikes, right?" Misty asked hopefully, pointing towards one of the cycling machines.

"No, because _I'm_ not using the bikes," Ash replied, pressing a hand against his chest. "I used them yesterday. Today is just using the weights."

"You expect _me_ to lift weights?" Misty scoffed. "I've never lifted weights in my whole entire life!"

"Then I guess today will be a first for you," Ash chuckled, causing Misty to growl.

Pikachu, who had been riding on Ash's shoulder, jumped off and scurried into the corner of the room, picking up a small, rubber covered dumbbell and lifting it up and down with his little paws.

"Way to go, buddy!" Ash chuckled.

"What, even _Pikachu_ lifts weights?" Misty gasped.

"Of course!" Ash laughed. "Not as heavy as mine, though. He's way too small for what _I_ lift!"

"And what do _you_ lift, Mr. Hot Shot?" Misty huffed.

"Usually around a hundred, or 125," Ash mused, walking over to one of the weight machines and changing around the weights.

"WHAT?!" Misty shrieked. "But…that's as much as I weigh! _Err_…maybe more."

"Well, I'm not going to make you lift _that _much," Ash laughed, ignoring Misty's shifty eyes. "You'll lift something a lot lighter."

"Good," Misty sighed.

"But that means you'll have to do more reps than me," Ash continued, causing Misty's eyes to widen.

"That's not fair!" Misty cried.

"Yes it is!" Ash argued. "I may do fewer reps, but I'll be lifting _a lot_ more than you. So, to make up for the weight you're not lifting, you'll just have to do it a few more times so we can still be even."

"I hate today already," Misty muttered.

"What was that?" Ash questioned in a sing-song voice.

"I'm ready to go!" Misty warbled, her voice and smile shaking as she nervously approached the weight machine.

**XXX**

After roughly an hour in the weight room, Misty was ready to take a nap.

Unfortunately, as Ash kept on reminding her, their day had just begun, and there was still lots to be done. The next bullet on his personal training list was to go outside and begin working out with his Pokémon. This, Misty assumed, would be an easy task. After all, she trained with her own Pokémon all the time!

This, however, would be _nothing_ like Misty was used to.

As soon as Ash released all five of his Pokémon, along with Pikachu of course, he led them towards an obstacle course and began instructing them on what to do. Misty found all of this to be completely normal.

Until Ash started running the course along _with_ them.

"Come on, Misty!" Ash called as he took a running leap over a collection of water.

"What? _I _have to run the course, too?" Misty groaned.

"Yeah!" Ash chuckled. "If my Pokémon are putting the work in, I do, too! Besides, you remember the bet! _You_ do everything that _I_ do!"

Misty apprehensively bit her lip. She was still tired from their weight lifting session! Not wanting Ash to win, however, the gym leader took after her husband and his pack of chosen Pokémon for the day and began to compete in the course as well. She managed to trip over barriers, slide down the climbing wall, and fall off of the swinging ropes several times; resulting in quite a few sore spots that Misty was sure would turn into bruises by the next morning.

After running the course for the fifth time, Misty hobbled past the finish line and glared at her husband, who had finished his fifth turn along with the Pokémon about ten minutes prior.

"See? That wasn't so bad!" Ash crowed.

"That's like the equivalent of saying being punched in the face by a Hitmonchan isn't so bad!" Misty wailed, huffing and puffing as she bent over and held onto her knees. "Can we take a break yet?"

"Misty, there's no breaks until lunchtime!" Ash chuckled. "I would _never_ get any work done if there was."

"Well _I'm_ not going to be able to catch my breath until _I_ get one!" Misty groaned.

Ash smiled sympathetically at his wife, who was still bent over in pitiful shape. "Alright, babe. I can tell you're tired. So, I'll be nice and give you something lighter to do."

"Thank…you…" Misty panted, too tired to even get sarcastic with the young man.

**XXX**

"This is something _lighter?!_"

Ash had brought Misty into his designated office inside of the training complex and sat her down behind his desk. While Misty was making herself comfortable in the big leather chair, Ash had dropped a giant stack of paperwork on the desk; one so high that Misty couldn't be seen behind it in her sitting position.

"Yeah!" Ash chirped. "This is the lightest load of paperwork I've had all week!"

"This is more paperwork than I get in a _whole month!_" Misty shrieked.

"A _Pokémon Master_ has a lot of information the League needs," Ash elucidated. "They want to know about the condition of _all_ of my Pokémon, even the ones I don't have with me today. I have to give the League constant updates on their weights, if they've learned any new attacks, and any injuries, illnesses, changes in diet, need for-"

"Alright, alright, I get it!" Misty interrupted, standing up to remove the top form in order to examine it. "So, when is all of this due? The end of the week."

"I wish!" Ash laughed. "It's all due before the end of the day."

"WHAT?!" Misty shouted, her eyes widening.

"You take the top half, and I'll take the bottom half," Ash tried, ignoring Misty's latest outburst. "If we do that, we should be all done with this paperwork by five o'clock!"

**XXX**

By the time Ash and Misty finally arrived home from the training complex, Misty was completely beat. As soon as Ash opened the front door, Misty moaned and collapsed on the floor, lying in the same exact position that Ash had been the day before.

"See? Not so easy, is it?" Ash quipped.

"No," Misty muttered, her voice muffled because her face was buried in the carpet.

"You're never going to make fun of me for conking out after work again, are you?" Ash continued.

"No."

"It isn't fun losing a bet to me, is it?" Ash tried not to laugh.

"No!"

Ash grinned to himself and glanced over at Pikachu, who seemed tired not from the whole day, but rather from Ash and Misty's ridiculous antics. With a quiet sigh, the electric mouse jumped off of his trainer's shoulder and scurried into the kitchen, looking for something to eat.

"Oh, and Misty?" Ash trilled.

"What?"

"You shouldn't lie on the floor," Ash smartly informed his wife. "It's a safety hazard. Someone might trip!"

Misty finally picked her face up and gave Ash the harshest glare she could possibly deliver. "I'll trip _you_ if you don't shut your trap!"

* * *

**Ash and Misty bets are fun. Especially when Ash ACTUALLY wins them :P Being a Pokémon Master has to be hard work! **


	10. Jealousy

**This was actually the first letter I came up with when it came to my alphabet challenge :D I'm really excited for you guys to read it, because I've had this idea for a while and I'm really glad I got to finally write it and share it with all of you! This is a fun one :P**

* * *

**Jealousy**

Ash was a rather selfish man.

Not in the common sense, of course. He was anything but, in fact. He was one of the kindest, gentlest, sweetest people in the world. Ash would do anything for his friends and strangers alike. He always stopped for autographs and pictures, and never failed to provide a star struck young trainer with helpful Pokémon advice.

No. Ash was selfish when it came to _Misty_.

The love of his life.

She was a pretty young woman; beautiful, in fact. She had been cute as a child, but not "model gorgeous" like her three older sisters. Once Misty had hit her teens, however, she began to rival the older girls' looks. Now, as a young adult, Misty was arguably _even more beautiful_ than them. The color of her hair was so rich and warm, and the color of her eyes was so deep and cool. Her skin was milky, her lips rosy, and her teeth glistening white. She was tall, with long legs and a slender body with delicate curves of muscle that obviously declared her as a swimmer.

In short, Misty was stunning, and Ash couldn't help but to feel that every other male in the world had their eyes set on her.

It _disgusted_ him. The very idea of these men having thoughts and ideas about his pretty girl. Dirty, vile thoughts that only Ash himself should have been allowed to think. After all, he was the only one allowed to look at Misty like that. The only one allowed to _touch her_ like that.

If he could have washed out all of their brains with soap, he would have.

Unfortunately, that wasn't possible. It also wouldn't actually do any good, although Ash simply chose to believe that it could. So, instead, he had to settle for being very protective of his fiancée.

A level of protectiveness that Misty could only describe as _jealousy_.

It didn't matter who the particular guy was. Ash was wary of any and all males who came to close to her. He was especially distrustful of the ones Misty worked closest with: other gym leaders and members of the Pokémon League. Functions for the League, as a result, tended to be very troubling for Ash, and very uncomfortable for Misty.

The current function they were at was a charity dinner being hosted by the League themselves. Almost as soon as they'd walked in, Ash had ditched Misty for the appetizer table, leaving the pretty red head to socialize for the _both_ of them.

While Ash was busy stuffing his face with crab cakes and shrimp, Misty had met up with Marlon, one of the Unova gym leaders. She always enjoyed talking to him, because he was a fellow water type specialist. He wasn't too bad on the eyes, either.

Ash, despite being preoccupied with downing half of the appetizer table, still managed to catch Misty and Marlon from out of the corner of his eye. This little sight nearly caused Ash to choke on his mouthful of food. Ash couldn't help but to view Marlon as one of his biggest threats when it came to Misty. After all, the man was a water type gym leader…just like his wife-to-be. He was also tall and handsome, and tan…with lots of muscles. Usually, the guy didn't walk around with a shirt on, which was just an added bonus for Ash's paranoia. Fortunately, the charity dinner was a _formal_ event that required _formal_ attire, which meant that Marlon had to be fully clothed.

That didn't make Ash feel any better, however.

After all, the dinner being a formal affair meant that Misty was _also_ dressed to the nines. Her strapless, mermaid dress was skintight, aqua in color and adorned by silver beading and sequins until it scalloped off over the tulle skirt. Even from the back, Ash could tell that Misty was softly scuffing the floor with her silver heels and delicately tucking loose curls of sunset locks behind her ears as she giggled at whatever Marlon was saying.

It was sending his overzealous tendencies into overdrive.

So, swallowing his fifteenth crab cake of the evening, Ash turned on a heel and began to march towards the two chatty gym leaders, his chocolate brown eyes narrowed in determination. As soon as he was next to Misty, Ash slung his arm around his fiancée's shoulders and pulled her roughly against his side, causing the beautiful young woman to audibly growl.

"Hey, Ash, there you are!" Marlon chuckled, his pearly whites visible as he laughed. "I was beginning to think Misty had left you at home!"

"Oh, she wishes," Ash murmured, Misty rolling her eyes as the words left his mouth. "So, what are we talking about over here?"

"Just the upcoming wedding!" Marlon crowed. His hand, which was currently holding a half full wine glass, motioned towards Misty's own left hand, which she had resting on the right side of her hip. "That's quite the rock you gave her!"

"Well, I only give Misty the best," Ash drawled as the redhead's eyes widened in horror. "And that ring certainly was the best!"

"I'd say so," Marlon murmured with a small chuckle before downing some more of his cabernet. "So, how is engaged life treating you two? The wedding planning and all of that?"

Misty opened her mouth to respond, but Ash was quick to cut her off, much to the female gym leader's annoyance.

"It's great!" Ash chirped. "It's really, really exciting, actually. Knowing that Misty is _all mine_, and we get to spend the _rest of our lives together_, is so awesome! We get to be all loyal, and loving, and we get to protect each other, too!"

"That's really sweet, Ash," Marlon earnestly replied. "You should include that in your wedding speech!"

Ash just grinned back foolishly at the male gym leader and swiftly moved his arm down Misty's back, grabbing a handful of her ass. Misty actually _jumped_ at the action, not having expected it in the slightest. Soon enough, her entire face turned as red as her hair, and she quickly grabbed onto the man's arm and began to yank him away from Marlon, making sure to throw an apologetic smile at the confused Unova gym leader before pulling Ash away to the other side of the room.

"What's up, Misty?" Ash asked almost stupidly.

"Oh, don't play dumb with me!" Misty scolded, digging her nails into Ash's tuxedo jacket and causing him to wince. "You know _exactly_ what's up!"

"What?" Ash whined. "That I grabbed you? Is that it?"

"You did that on purpose!" Misty hissed.

"Well, of course I did!" Ash whirred. "My hand didn't just grab your butt on accident!"

"You made it obvious!" Misty growled, not liking that Ash was skipping around the facts. "You made _sure _that Marlon saw! That wasn't a flirty little squeeze, Ash. That was a 'this is my property' snatch! And I don't appreciate it!"

"You're just being delusional," Ash scoffed, although his own cheeks were now turning red and betraying him. "I didn't make a show out of it!"

"Yes, you did," Misty continued to push the fact. "You _always_ do! Why do you have to be so _jealous_, huh?"

"I'm not jealous!" Ash cried, his eyes widening at the suggestion.

"Now you think _I'm_ the dumb one," Misty huffed. "Anyone could tell that you're jealous! I can tell just by looking in your eyes!"

"How can you do that?" Ash demanded to know, although part of his tone actually sounded curious.

"Because I know you very well," Misty murmured. "And when you get all jealous, your eyes kind of light up. But not in that cute way like when you're _really_ happy. They light up almost like fire because you're _so_ pissed off. And that's _exactly_ what I saw in your eyes before you grabbed my ass!"

"That…that doesn't prove anything…" Ash muttered, his voice losing the edge it had possessed before.

"Ash, there's no reason to get so worked up, okay?" Misty sighed, grabbing onto her fiancé's shoulder instead of his arm, and not using her nails this time around. "You know how much I love you! I would never, _ever_ do anything to upset you. Just because I'm talking to other guys doesn't mean I feel the same way about them that I feel about you. I never have, and I never will. You mean everything to me, Ash."

The young man smiled and wrapped his arms around Misty, hugging her tightly as she rested her head atop his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Misty," Ash whispered, pressing a hand against her back. "I trust you. I really do. I'll try to keep my jealousy under control from now on. I promise."

"That's all I could ask," Misty murmured, pulling away before gently pressing her lips against Ash's. "Oh, and Ash?"

Ash was still smiling sweetly at his fiancée. "Yeah, Mist?"

Misty's face turned to a more serious disposition, with her brow slightly furrowed and her lips pressed tightly together. "Don't you _ever_ grab my ass in front of a fellow gym leader again."

* * *

**Ash doesn't exactly know how to deal with his jealousy, as you can see. He overcompensates with the flirting and possessiveness :P I also just wanted an excuse to get Misty and Marlon together, lol.**


	11. Knockout

**Here's K for ya! This one took me a little while longer too, because again I had trouble coming up with a word! Yes, trouble with the letter K. X should be fun, guys. Stick around for the entertainment!**

* * *

**Knockout**

"Hey! Misty!"

The young gym leader sighed and put down her book, glancing up in aggravation from where she sat behind the lobby desk. Ash was running through the front door, a foolish smile stretched across his face as he held his arm up in the air.

"What are you doing?" Misty sighed, shaking her head.

"Can't you see?" Ash asked before following it up with a chuckle. "I caught a new Pokémon!"

Misty rolled her eyes up further towards Ash's hand, where she finally realized that the boy was clutching a familiar red and white sphere.

"What kind of Pokémon?" Misty questioned.

Ash smirked and finally lowered his hand, holding the poke ball up against his chest. "Wouldn't _you_ like to know."

"Come on, don't be a pain in the ass!" Misty whined, throwing her book down on the desktop. "I want to know what kind of Pokémon you caught!"

"It's a surprise."

"For what?" Misty demanded, Ash's calm and nonchalant tone getting to her more than it should have.

"Our battle, of course!" Ash laughed. Misty raised one incredulous eyebrow, and as soon as Ash saw it, he sighed and allowed his shoulders to drop. "Misty!"

"I didn't say anything!" Misty defended herself.

"You didn't have to, your _face_ did all of the talking," Ash grumbled. "Why won't you battle me anymore?"

"Because ever since we started dating, people expect us to be at one another's throats all the time," Misty explained in a begrudging manner. "And when you battle, you get kind of cutthroat. Besides…"

"Besides what?" Ash pushed once his girlfriend trailed off.

"Well…it's been _such_ a long time since you and I battled one another," Misty continued, sounding quite sheepish. "And I've gotten much better in that time. Like…_much_ better."

"So, what are you saying?" Ash murmured. "That you'll beat me?"

"Oh, no, I won't just beat you," Misty assured with a laugh. "I'll _cream_ you."

Ash's chocolate eyes snapped open, and that shocked expression soon melted into one of an obvious snarl. "Oh yeah?"

"That's what I'm assuming," Misty warbled softly.

"Well, there's only one way to test your little theory," Ash bit.

Misty smirked. She knew what the answer to that rhetorical statement was, but sometimes, she liked to get a little feisty and push Ash's buttons. Okay…she liked to do that a _lot_.

"And that would be…?" Misty trilled, her eyes twinkling as Ash's entire face flushed.

"A battle!" Ash stormed, holding his newly occupied poke ball in front of his girlfriend's face.

"Ash…" Misty began cautiously.

"Oh no, you're not going back on it now!" Ash refuted. "You challenged me, and I'm not letting you out of here without a battle!"

"Are you _sure?_" Misty sighed.

"Misty, I'm not afraid to battle you," Ash grumbled. "In fact, I'm starting to think _you're_ afraid to battle _me!_"

Misty's eyes snapped open wide, her hand clenching into a fist atop the desk. "Excuse me?"

"All of this 'I've gotten better and I'll destroy you' stuff is beginning to sound a little fishy to me," Ash carried on. "I think the _real_ reason you never want to battle me anymore is because you've realized that I've become a more superior trainer, and you don't want to be embarrassed!"

"That's a joke, right?" Misty spat.

"I just don't want to see your feelings get hurt when I beat you," Ash crooned softly, though teasingly. The smile in his face solidified his joking manner, but that didn't make Misty laugh. In fact, all it did was fire her up to her breaking point.

"Oh, _we'll_ see whose feelings get hurt when they get beaten to a pulp!" Misty stormed, jumping to her feet and getting right in Ash's face. "Let's go! Into the battle area, _now!_"

Ash smirked and turned on his heel, marching towards the battle area. He knew that provoking Misty like that would get her off of her butt to battle! Although, deep down inside, Ash truly _did _believe that Misty was afraid to lose against him. After all, he was on his way to becoming Champion of the Kanto region! It was understandable that he would be viewed as a near unbeatable opponent.

Taking his place on the nearest platform, the one that all gym challengers stood on, Ash grinned across the pool at his clearly agitated girlfriend, who had just stepped onto her platform. She had already plucked a poke ball from the nearby metal rack where all of her battle partners were stored when there was no gym match going on, and was staring Ash down like he was her prey.

"Alright, this will be a one-on-one match," Ash called. "Whoever knocks out the other one's Pokémon first wins!"

"Perfect," Misty murmured, smiling sneakily at her bewildered boyfriend.

"Time to show off my new Pokémon!" Ash cheered. "Come on out!"

He tossed the red and white sphere into the air, and Misty watched as it popped open and shot out a beam of sparkling blue light that formed into a strange, very specific shape before bursting and revealing the figure of Snover.

"A primary grass, secondary ice type, hmm?" Misty hummed, looking the frost tree Pokémon up and down.

"Grass has the advantage over water," Ash supplied, knowing full well his girlfriend wouldn't use _any_ Pokémon besides a water type. She really couldn't. "And _ice_ is resistant to water."

"I thought that overcoming type advantage was your specialty," Misty quipped. "Now it sounds like you're relying on it!"

"I'm not relying on anything," Ash scoffed. "I was just making an observation. It's not like it's a shock that you're going to send out a water type, after all."

"You're right, it's not," Misty warbled, throwing in a wink for good measure. "It's _which_ water type I'm going to send out that might be a surprise!"

Tossing her own poke ball up in the air, Misty tossed a smirk Ash's way before watching the sphere pop open and emit a burst of blue light, similar to what Ash's poke ball had done. The light emerging from Misty's poke ball was much more powerful, however. It was so bright, in fact, that Ash had to cover his eyes when the beam reached its climax. As soon as it died down, Ash slowly looked up, and as soon as he saw which Pokémon Misty had selected, his eyes widened and his jaw dropped.

"Oh, holy-"

"What's the matter, Ashy?" Misty called teasingly, her emerald eyes twinkling with mischief. "Scared?"

Ash gulped, feeling fortunate that Misty couldn't see or hear that action. Glaring at his girlfriend, Ash shook his head just once and strongly refuted, "No! Of course not!"

"Alright then," Misty hummed. "So…you won't mind if I take the first move?"

"Not at all," Ash shakily replied. "Be my guest!"

"Great!" Misty trilled. "Alright, Gyarados, use hyper beam!"

The atrocious Pokémon let out a vicious roar, one that nearly sent both Ash _and_ his newly captured Snover toppling into the water. Before either one could react, the massive dual type Pokémon fired off a bright orange beam in Snover's direction. It hit the much smaller creature head on, and a loud explosion quickly followed. Ash had to look away once again, but Misty simply stood on her platform with a smirk on her face and her hands on her hips.

As soon as the smoke cleared, and Ash was able to look up once again, he saw that Snover was lying flat on his back, left unable to battle thanks to Gyarados' most powerful attack.

"I win," Misty chimed simply, pulling out Gyarados' poke ball and returning the fully evolved Pokémon before throwing Ash another smirk and stepping off of her platform, walking straight towards the battle area's doorway.

Ash, on the other hand, was still standing on his own platform, his face and body still completely frozen as he tried to process what had just happened right in front of him. A soft grunt escaping from his throat as he returned Snover to its poke ball, Ash whipped around and chased after Misty, his brow quickly furrowing as his tone transformed into nothing more than a whine.

"_Miiiistyyyy!_ I didn't say you were allowed to use Gyarados!"

* * *

**I love it when Misty kicks ass :P And I know Ash isn't typically a sore loser, but I think against Misty, then yes, he would be a little bitter. Especially when it's a one hit KO :P**


	12. Lingerie

**So most of you hated K. Good, I kind of hated it too XD Not being funny. I really wasn't big on it. But...you live and learn.**

**ANYWAY, this one is much, much, MUCH better. This was actually the first letter I came up with when planning this story, and I've been so excited to write it. This one is DEFINITELY upholding the T rating, I'll tell you that much ;)**

* * *

**Lingerie**

Ash hated shopping.

But Misty loved it. And Ash loved Misty. So, he had to deal with shopping. Because he loved Misty, and he loved spending time with her.

But _man_ did he hate shopping.

It always took Misty hours. And he was the one who got stuck carrying all of the bags! Misty was really quite good about it, other than making him carry all of her purchases. She would offer time and time again to go to a store that Ash would enjoy looking at. The problem was there was _no_ store in the mall that Ash actually liked. He hated looking at clothes…he was a simple man who wore the same basic outfit every day. The only store in the _world_ Ash didn't mind looking in was the supermarket, and even _that _he wasn't big on. He just relied on Misty to bring home the food for him.

Today, already, they had been to about ten different stores. Most of them were clothing stores, although two or three had been shoe stores. Ash hated the shoe stores the most. He thought his wife was the most gorgeous woman in the world, and even watching her try on clothes could get boring. But shoes? Well…there was nothing attractive about shoes. At least with the clothes, Ash could hope for too much cleavage popping out or skin tight jeans that showed off the delicate curves of Misty's legs…and her butt.

He had at least six shopping bags in hand (he'd lost count after the fifth store they'd walked out of) and each one was heavier than the last. Ash, of course, was strong, but lugging around the bags for hours on end was _definitely_ a workout. And not a fun one, either.

_I wish that Pikachu hadn't chosen to go to the market with Mom instead, _Ash thought huffily.

"Ash, come on! There's still one more store we need to go to!"

The Pokémon Master's eyes widened and soon snapped back into a glare as he set them on his bewildered wife.

"_Another one?_" Ash groaned. "You've already bought…like…a whole new wardrobe! How can you possibly still have another store to go to?"

"Because they don't sell clothes," Misty replied simply. "They sell something else."

"It better not be any more shoes," Ash grumbled.

"It's not, I swear," Misty giggled, holding her hand out towards Ash. "Come on!"

"Mist, I'd _love _to hold your hand, but they're a little preoccupied right now," Ash hissed, holding up the multitude of shopping bags in his possession.

"Oh, right," Misty murmured sheepishly, her cheeks flashing red. "Sorry. Just…come on! Follow me. Once we get there, and I try things on, you can put those bags down for a little while."

Ash's mouth hung open at this, but he trailed after his wife regardless, because he didn't really have much of a choice. "You have to try _more_ things on?"

"Well, how else would I know if the stuff is going to fit?" Misty complained, still making her way towards the store.

"Can't you just buy the stuff and try it on at home?" Ash whined.

"No, because if I try it on here, and it doesn't fit, I can get the right size and save myself the trouble of an extra trip to the mall," Misty explained in an exhausted fashion.

Ash chose to keep his mouth shut for the rest of the trek. He knew there was no use in trying to get out of it, so arguing was a waste of his breath. He'd just have to continue following Misty around like a little Lilipup and allow her to have her fun.

_Besides, maybe if I behave, she'll let _me _have _my _kind of fun when we get home._

"Here it is!"

Misty's trilling voice brought Ash back down to Earth. He hadn't even been able to see the name of the store before Misty dragged him in by the arm, obviously excited for the last stop on her extensive shopping trip. Once she let go, Ash managed to stand up straight and look around the store with slightly piqued interest.

The color scheme of the store was pink and black, with very low lighting. Hanging from metal racks on the wall and in painted boxes on the floor were frilly, lacey, girly undergarments of all shapes and sizes. Suddenly, Ash felt the color of his face change from its natural tan to a more scarlet hue. When he looked forward, he found Misty standing in front of him with a smirk on her face and her arms crossed against her chest.

"Uh…y-you need a new bra, Mist?" Ash murmured.

"Nah, that's boring," Misty refuted, once again grabbing her husband's arm and pulling him towards the back of the store.

Ash turned his head all around as he was pulled, checking out all of the bras and panties and mentally imagining Misty in the various pieces. He had become so preoccupied in his little fantasy world, in fact, that Misty had to snap him out of it by the time she reached the section of the store that she'd been looking for.

"Ash!"

The man blinked hard and looked back over at Misty. She was rolling her eyes at him, and before he could ask a single question, she strode away towards a nearby rack of satin slips.

"Oh…" Ash breathed.

"Ash, you wait right there while I pick out some things to try on,"

"Y-yeah…okay…" Ash murmured, not even moving his foot a single inch.

It took Misty around ten minutes to pick out a few different slips and babydolls to try on. Ash couldn't really see them very well, since they were all draped over her slender arm, but that didn't mean he wasn't excited to find out what they all looked like.

"Would you like to come with me to the dressing room and see what these look like on?" Misty purred, already knowing what Ash's answer would be.

"Yes, please," Ash's hushed, gruff voice croaked.

Giggling, Misty began to skirt towards the dressing rooms, Ash following dutifully behind. Suddenly, the bags he was carrying didn't feel so heavy.

**XXX**

Ash was standing before the closed door of Misty's dressing room with his back against the wall, arms folded across his chest as he impatiently tilted his head back and forth. He had wanted Misty to get out of dressing rooms _all day_ so they could leave the mall, but now, all he wanted was for Misty to re-emerge so he could ogle her in whatever negligee she was going to come out in first.

_I hope it's blue or green, those shades really bring out the color of her eyes. Wait…what am I saying? As long as it's skimpy, I don't care _what _color it is!_

Finally, the black enamel door slowly swung open, bringing Ash off of the wall and his allowing his arms to drop down to his sides. Misty was soon standing right across from him, her hands on her hips with an impish smile on her face and her eyes seductively narrowed.

"Whoa…" Ash breathed.

She was dressed in a black chiffon babydoll, with a deep V-neckline made of delicate black lace. The lace continued down to trim the underside of her breasts, where the top soon split at the center, leaving her toned stomach bare and on display between two separate layers of flyaway ruffles. The only other coverage Misty had on was a matching black chiffon bikini panty that only covered what _absolutely_ needed to be covered.

"Do you like this one?" Misty asked playfully, bending down just enough so her breasts began to push against the lace trimmed, triangle cups.

"Uh I…I…yes," Ash stammered, fully unable to blink as he looked Misty up and down.

"Good, I like this one too," Misty giggled, standing back up to her full height and delicately gripping the side of the door while spinning around so her backside was facing Ash. "I'm going to try another one on!"

"You do that…" Ash murmured, watching with transfixed eyes as the door closed and Misty disappeared from his view.

The next slip Misty emerged in was an aqua colored lace babydoll, with a halter neck that only covered about half of her chest. It plunged down low, a good inch or so beneath her breasts, leaving the ivory skin over her sternum bare. The flowy skirt ended mid-thigh, with one noticeable slit going up each side. Beneath the sheer, floral lace, a string silk panty was visible, leaving even _less _to the imagination than the previous pair had.

"This one is pretty too," Misty hummed, purposely pushing her chest out towards Ash. The young man sucked in his breath and rapidly nodded his head, wantonly kicking the sole of his foot against the wall he'd once been leaning on. "Do you like the color?"

"Yes!" Ash finally blurted, his head still bobbing up and down.

"Can you see too much?" Misty prodded, gently pulling at the lace that was covering her right breast.

"No no no," Ash rushed out, leading Misty to smirk. "It's just perfect! So, uh…could I…maybe go pick something out for you to try on?"

Misty's smirk transformed into a surprised 'O' shape, while her emerald eyes widened as her thick eyelashes batted just twice. "Really?"

"Y-yeah…" Ash babbled, the skin on his nose and cheeks just flushed. "If…you don't mind…"

Misty giggled once again, Ash watching her chest as it moved with her laughter. "Of course I don't mind, Ashy! Find me something pretty!"

"Oh, I will," Ash muttered, stepping out of the dressing room and back into the store.

Ash returned rather quickly, with his chosen set in hand. He quickly handed it off to Misty and watched as the door closed, not even bothering to lean against the wall again. It felt like an eternity until the door opened up again, and as soon as it did, Ash knew his wait had been well worth it.

Misty had, in fact, come out wearing what he had chosen: a white lace and mesh bustier with a bow between her breasts, which had been pushed up by the padding in the bustier's cups. A matching white lace thong had been paired with the top, leaving a considerable strip of skin between the two garments.

"You're a simple man, aren't you?" Misty teased.

"You could say that…" Ash murmured, his voice and eyes filled with equivalent lust.

"I actually really like it," Misty commented, running a hand up and down her lace covered stomach. "It fits nicely. And I like the push up in the top. You did good, Ash!"

The Pokémon Master said nothing in response. He just stood there with a slack jaw and unblinking eyes, with drool practically pouring out of the corner of his mouth. Misty smiled expressively at her husband, leaning against the door frame and cocking her head just slightly to the side.

"I know what you want," Misty purred, causing Ash's eyebrows to go up ever so slightly. "You can't wait, can you?"

Ash shook his head slowly, almost like a zombie. Giggling, Misty removed herself from the door frame and ran her hands up her husband's muscular arms until she was gripping his broad shoulders. She pushed her body against his and felt the heat suddenly rise in the room. Ash, although she couldn't tell from her perspective, felt the same spike in temperature. He let out a slow, soft breath, his russet eyes switching between Misty's face and her nicely displayed breasts.

"You're _so_ impatient," Misty growled lowly, standing up on her toes to lock her lips gently against Ash's. She had started the kiss softly, but soon enough, she was nipping at Ash's lower lip, egging him on for more. Getting the hint, Ash gently embraced his wife by her lower back and slipped his tongue into her mouth, earning a hidden smirk from the satisfied gym leader. She felt his hand roam lower and lower, until finally, they were cupping her bottom. Misty moaned softly and pulled her head away from Ash's, choosing instead to rest it on his shoulder. "Ash…"

Sighing, Ash tilted his own head down and delicately bit the upper cartilage of Misty's ear, nosing away strands of her bright red hair to get more space to nibble.

"I want you," Ash muttered. Misty turned her head so she could properly see her husband's face, and found that his eyes were half lidded with undeniable lust.

"Then take me," Misty dared, a familiar spark going off in her deep green eyes.

Ash grinned almost foolishly, knowing that Misty had used that tone on purpose. She knew full well Ash could never ignore a challenge, and that's exactly what she had just posed to him. Picking his head up, Ash looked from side to side down the strip of room that existed before the dressing room stalls, and happily found that no one else was present.

Then again, things would have _already_ been awkward had someone been there.

"Let's go," Ash chuckled in a hushed manner, lifting Misty up effortlessly by her bottom. The gym leader shrieked delightfully and wrapped her legs around her husband's waist, squeezing them tightly and smirking down at the young man as she draped her arms around in his neck in a similar fashion to her legs and his waist. "Try to keep it down in there, Mist."

Misty gasped and tightened her grip around her husband's neck to give him a slight choke. "I am _not_ loud!"

"We'll just see about that," Ash mused, pushing past the half-open door of Misty's dressing room before kicking it closed with the bottom of his foot.

By the end of the day, Misty had three new sets of lingerie, Ash had a newfound interest in shopping, and they _both_ had another location to add to their list of "public places we've had sex at."

* * *

**Yeah, that's right, I cut it off XD I don't know if I'm ready for full blown lemons yet. Don't want to insult anyone with that XD I still need some practice in that department, lol. But I thought what was in this one was lots of fun :P Hopefully, you all enjoyed this one more than the last one!**


	13. Meeting

**Letter M here! I figured we needed some other gym leaders in this story, so that's what this chapter is for! And some Ash and Misty embarrassment, too :P**

* * *

**Meeting**

Being a gym leader was considered to be a very prestigious title. It meant that you were one of the best trainers in the world when it came to your chosen type specialty.

What many (if not most) young trainers didn't realize, however, was that being a gym leader was also a lot of work, and not just veneration and fame.

There was paperwork. Lots and _lots _of paperwork. There were inspections and evaluations and unannounced visits from League officials.

Worst of all, there were gym leader meetings.

The purpose of the meetings was to compare notes and examine the current state of the region's gyms. Win to loss ratios were displayed and discussed, along with training techniques, exercises, ideas for the upcoming month, and expectations from the League.

Much too often, however, the meetings ended up becoming a tangled mess of rumors, myths, and "he said she said" scenarios that made the professional conference feel more like a high school homeroom.

No one hated it more than Misty.

She took her job very seriously, but it didn't seem like anyone else did. As soon as the first hint of silence would emerge in the meetings, the other gym leaders would all start talking at once, and _not _about gym leader related topics. Hell, even big Lt. Surge and ancient Blaine always joined in on the rumor mill!

So, when Misty arrived for the next meeting, she was fully prepared for another three hours of "did you hear" and "someone told me" and the ever popular, "I know someone's brother's cousin who told me…"

Misty couldn't stand it. But at least she knew what to expect.

Walking into the conference room, Misty dejectedly dropped her handbag onto the table and tugged at her aqua blue satin blouse to straighten it out. The last thing she needed, after all, was for someone like Erika to get in her face and begin trash talking her outfit. It was going to be bad enough having to listen to her, and everyone else, go on and on about business that wasn't any of their concern.

"Hey! There she is!"

The water type leader sighed and turned around, finding herself face-to-face with none other than Lt. Surge and Will, the current gym leader of Viridian City. Why that gym was so hard to find a leader for, Misty had no idea. But she knew that Will was fairly annoying and immature for his age.

In a way, he was like Ash. But at least Ash had some redeeming qualities.

"Hey guys," Misty muttered, turning back to her bag and digging through it, pretending to search for something.

"So…we heard something _pretty _interesting," Will hummed, striding up to Misty's side.

"Cool," Misty drawled sarcastically. "Bet I don't care."

"Bet you do," Will teased.

Misty rolled her eyes, but chose not to respond with any actual words.

"We heard you was datin' the winner of the Indigo League," Lt. Surge continued. "What's his name again?"

"Ash Ketchum!" Will warbled, causing Misty to shoot back up to her full height.

"Where did you hear that?" Misty demanded to know, getting in the two leaders' faces.

"Everyone in the League is talking about it!" Lt. Surge chuckled. "So, tell me, has he grown up at all since his baby days?"

"Is he really as dense as everyone says he is?" Will pressed.

"You two are like a couple of teenage girls!" Misty growled, pushing past the two prying men. "My romantic life _really_ isn't any of your business!"

"We just wanted to know if the rumors were true!" Will whined.

"Like hell I'm telling _you_, mask man," Misty muttered, leading Will to frown and subconsciously touch the black mask that was plastered over his eyes.

Before Misty could even _think _about catching a break, she was soon faced with two more gym leaders: Erika and Janine. Also known as the worst offenders of the chit chat.

"Oh no," Misty groaned under her breath.

"Misty!" Janine squealed. "You're dating Ash?!"

"Uh-"

"Does he still disrespect perfume?" Erika huffed.

"That was _years_ ago, Erika, get over it!" Misty hissed.

"Well, is he at least any more mature than he was back then?" Erika tried. "I can't imagine it would be much fun to date such a child."

"I never said I was dating him!" Misty screeched. "But he's _not _a child anymore."

"So you _are_ dating him!" Erika trilled.

"I never said that!" Misty repeated angrily. "It is possible for a boy and a girl to just be _friends_, you know! We're _friends!_ We hang out together, as _friends!_ Quit trying to make some big deal out of nothing!"

"Of course we know that," Janine sighed. "But you and Ash certainly seem like a lot more than friends!"

"Don't we have to start the meeting soon?" Misty pressed, trying to change the subject. "We should all probably sit down and start getting our paperwork in ord-"

"Misty, you're dating Ash?!"

The water type specialist scowled and looked towards the door, where Forrest had just walked through. He had a goofy grin on his face that soon transformed into one of confusion when he saw Misty's angry glare.

"I thought you were on _my_ side!" Misty seethed.

"I am!" Forrest cried, holding his hands in front of himself for protection. "I'm just curious is all!"

"Alright, that's it," Misty bit, pulling out her chair and stepping on it so she could reach the table and clamber up onto the center of it. "Listen up, you nosy psychopaths! I am _not_ dating Ash Ketchum! And even if I _was_, it wouldn't be any of your business! So, how about we all _sit down_ and actually attempt to do our jo-"

"Misty, you forgot your lunch at my mom's house!"

The gym leaders standing on the floor all turned around and stared out into the hallway. Ash was awkwardly present, holding up a brown bag and shifting his matching eyes between the hoard of stunned gym leaders.

"Well, that didn't work," Misty muttered to herself, smacking a hand against her forehead.

"And you also left without giving me a kiss!"

"ASH! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"

* * *

**At least Misty can use fear tactics to get everyone to leave her alone. Ash, unfortunately, is too naïve to actually deny anything. And he just wanted a kiss!**


	14. Needs

**Letter N! This one is shorter than most. It's more drabble-ish. I'm trying to experiment with a few different things; I always am! So, here's a drabble-esque (obviously not strict drabble) installment for you guys!**

* * *

**Needs**

When it comes to the basic needs in life, there are three bullets on the traditional list: food, clothing, and shelter.

Misty, while she might not have had the happiest childhood, at least had all of those things. It was enough to survive, and keep her safe, and content enough. Even as a child, however, Misty believed that happiness was just as important as those three things. Feeling loved and wanted were important.

And, at home, she never felt that.

Deep down inside, she knew her sisters loved her. She really did. But they were teenagers. Bratty, girly, stupid teenagers. They didn't know how to take care of a little girl. They could barely cook, never had time (or enough interest) to do the things that Misty liked, and only bought her clothes that _they_ liked. Misty thought that spending money on the frilly, stiff designer clothes was a waste. She was most comfortable in t-shirts and shorts…and not ones of the expensive variety.

When she finally turned ten, and basically ran away from home, Misty didn't know what to do next. She had told her sisters it was the start of her Pokémon journey, which she _guessed_ it was. More or less, however, it was an escape to finally be free. To be herself.

And to perhaps search for those missing needs that she so desired.

Eventually, she made friends. Quite a few friends, in fact. Brock, Tracey, Casey, Sakura, May, Max…Ash.

_Ash_. No one made her blood boil quite like Ash. That stupid boy with the pitch black hair and the chocolate brown eyes. The stupid boy with the warm, tan skin, and the sweet, obscure markings beneath his eyes. The stupid boy with the adorable Pikachu and the unbeatable determination.

Misty had never cared so much about someone she thought she could never possibly get along with.

When she was with Ash, she felt something she never felt with her sisters back home. Not the aggravation, of course. Misty couldn't seem to escape _that_ no matter where she went. What she felt travelling with Ash, and not living at home with her sisters, was that she was wanted, and appreciated. Even when she and Ash were bickering and trying to go at one another's throats, they still cared about one another. Misty could tell. Because she could feel it.

When they traveled, food and shelter could sometimes be hard to come across. Especially when Ash and his lack of directional sense got them lost in a forest or the middle of nowhere. Oddly enough, however, Misty was happier foraging for food with the young male than when she was at home eating her sister's half-baked lasagna. And she was happier sleeping on the cold, hard dirt ground than in her own bed while her sisters' screeching and incessant partying could be heard from the bottom floor. She also didn't have as many clothes on the road. Misty, like her friends, would just wear the same clothes every day, and wash them when they got dirty. But that was _still_ better than wearing the girly designer clothes her sisters bought for her!

Her friendship with Ash was the most important thing in the world to her. Misty, of course, felt a little more strongly than that about him. She didn't know if Ash felt the same way…he was a bit slow. He never talked about romance or love. In fact, he _barely_ seemed to know what those things were. Unless it was about Pokémon or food, Ash was pretty clueless. But he was sweet, kind, and caring. Which was why Misty had feelings for him in the first place. He may have been dense, but at least he had a heart of gold. He really did try his best, even when he didn't completely understand what was going on. She _craved_ his attention, even more than food or shelter or clothing.

Even if Ash didn't know what he was doing when he stayed up late to talk to her, or offhandedly complimented her on how good her hair looked when it was down, or playfully chased after her during training breaks, all of those things helped Misty to feel loved. To feel wanted. It was such an unusual feeling, something she had always longed for.

And now that she had it, Misty never wanted to let it go.

Misty had figured that maybe those basic needs, if you had the right amount of love, only needed to be doled out in the bare minimum. She didn't need home cooked meals, a big fancy house, or designer clothes to be happy.

As long as she was with Ash, Misty felt that her needs were met.

* * *

**Not my favorite, but it's still cute, I think :) I went for no dialogue and a slightly more vague feeling for this one. It's different than what I usually write, that's for sure! I prefer longer ones, but hey, you try :P**


	15. Oversight

**Letter O! This is a funny one. Ash and Misty aren't together yet in this one, by the way. Imagine them as around...16. Yes, that sounds good to me :P**

* * *

**Oversight**

"Brock's flirting with a girl again."

Misty scoffed and began to examine her nails. Not because she was girly, mind you, but because she was bored. "Brock's about to get _rejected_ by a girl again."

Ash intently watched the older male from his spot at the table they had set up outside, tilting his head to the side. "Why do you think Brock does that so much?"

"Does what?" Misty murmured. "Acts like an idiot?"

"No," Ash sighed before furrowing his brow and thinking, "well, maybe. I mostly meant why does he hit on girls so much?"

"Probably because he's an unstably hormonal teenage boy," Misty commented mindlessly.

"But…Brock's not a teenager anymore," Ash mused.

"Then maybe he's just overcompensating," Misty replied huffily, her eyes widening as those words left her mouth and a new thought popped into her head.

"For what?" Ash pressed.

"Maybe Brock is…no, it can't be," Misty muttered, rubbing her chin in thought.

"I want to know what you're thinking!" Ash cried, practically jumping out of his chair. "Tell me, Misty!"

"Maybe he just flirts with girls all the time to use it as a shield," Misty thought aloud. "A cover up."

"A cover up?" Ash repeated. "You mean like…to hide a crime?"

Misty sighed and shook her head. "_No_, Ash. You watch too much TV. I don't think Brock's a criminal! I think he might be…err…"

"He might be what?" Ash queried.

"Gay," Misty squeaked, cautiously eyeing an obviously confused Ash.

"Is that a bad thing?" Ash questioned.

"No, of course not. It's just an observation. It might not even be true."

Ash stood up from his chair and walked up beside Misty, who was still sitting in her own. He gripped the back of her chair, his fingers inadvertently touching her back and causing the girl to blush. "What makes you think that?"

"Well…who flirts with girls _that_ much?" Misty sighed, waving her hand towards where Brock was currently trying to impress a bewildered blonde girl. "This happens _every single day!_ At least _five times a day_, in fact!"

"I sorta' just thought Brock was really determined, but you might have a point," Ash noted.

"We should get it out of him," Misty decided, slowly nodding her head.

Ash's eyes widened at such a suggestion, and he glanced down at the redhead who was currently spewing her various theories. "How? What if he doesn't realize it?"

"Ash, if he's _covering something up_, he obviously knows what," Misty groaned. "He just doesn't want anyone else to know."

"Oh."

"But we need to show Brock that we will accept him for who he is, no matter what!" Misty cheered, standing up from her own seat now in order to be at eye level with Ash, who had now grown tall enough to actually be the same height as her, if not a little taller.

"That's a great idea, Misty!" Ash chuckled. "Maybe you're right. Maybe Brock is just scared or embarrassed or something, and he needs to see that we'll still be friends with him!"

"Now you're thinking!" Misty giggled, patting Ash's shoulder and causing his heart to race. "All we have to do now is wait for him to be rejected by that blonde girl."

Ash peered over Misty's shoulder and tried to choke back a guttural laugh. "Well, _that's_ not going to be much of a wait."

Misty turned around and caught sight of Brock already halfway back towards them, trudging himself along with his head down and arms hanging.

"Be subtle," Misty whispered to Ash, who nodded in response.

They watched on as Brock got closer and closer to them, until he was finally back at the site of their set up for lunch.

"Hey, Brock!" Misty greeted cheerfully. "How'd that work out for you?"

"Not good," Brock groaned, sitting on the ground and pouting while Ash and Misty looked on.

"Aw, you'll…you'll get 'em next time, Brock!" Ash tried.

"Or…you might get someone else!" Misty suggested brightly, earning a confused glance from Brock. "Whatever you want, Brock."

"Thanks, guys," Brock sighed, getting to his feet and walking over to where he'd been cooking lunch for the group.

Ash and Misty looked at one another before following after Brock, standing directly behind him and practically breathing down his neck. With one eyebrow twitching, Brock looked over his shoulder and glared at Ash and Misty, who seemed unaffected by his stern gaze.

"Guys…" Brock sighed, "What are you doing?"

"We just want to make sure you're okay!" Misty trilled.

"You kind of get turned down by girls an awful lot," Ash added, earning a whack in the upper back from Misty's sharp elbow.

"But…it's okay!" Misty continued. "Maybe you're just looking in the wrong places."

"Or at the wrong people!" Ash blurted, earning yet another whack from Misty.

Brock shifted his eyes between his two younger friends, who were beaming all too brightly at him. "Seriously, guys. What are you doing?"

"We're not telling you how to live your life, Brock," Misty sighed, smiling encouragingly at the confused male. "And we won't judge you for it, either! Whoever you are, we'll accept you."

"Uh…thanks?"

"So what do you think of Gary?" Ash butted in, Misty scowling at his directness. "I mean, I think he's a pain in the ass, but I've also always kind of thought that his playboy thing was just an act."

"Um…that's pretty random, Ash," Brock murmured. "Gary's nice enough, I guess."

"Oh, that's good!" Ash drawled. "I could totally set you guys up!"

Brock furrowed his brow, and Misty finally lost her patience, wrapping her arms around Ash's neck and basically choking him.

"I told you to be subtle!" Misty hissed, ignoring Ash's gargled pleas for her to let go.

"Wait a minute…" Brock mused, running Ash and Misty's various comments through his head. "YOU TWO THINK I'M-"

"Brock, don't get so upset!" Misty urged, taking her arms off of Ash's neck and instead holding her hands out towards the livid male. "We still love you! You don't have to deny anything!"

"I'm not gay!" Brock hissed, his entire face turning red. "Where would you even get that idea from?!"

"Well, we thought that all of the flirting you do with girls was kind of like a cover up," Ash explained, scratching his head. "Especially with all of the rejection."

"That's not a cover up!" Brock wailed. "I just happen to be on a bad luck streak when it comes to attracting the opposite sex, okay?!"

"How long has _that_ streak been going on?" Misty muttered. "Your whole life?"

"Look, guys, it's sweet of you to let me know that you accept me no matter what," Brock sighed, not wanting to completely lash out at the two for their…good natured attempt at being respectful friends. "I appreciate it. But…I'm not gay. Trust me. All of that flirting is genuine. I'm not overcompensating for anything."

"Sorry, Brock," Misty apologized, smiling at the man. "Guess we just jumped to conclusions."

"It's alright," Brock chuckled softly. "I think you two might just be a little hungry is all. Good thing lunch is almost ready!"

"We'll go set the table for you!" Misty cheered, grabbing Ash by the arm and pulling him towards the table. "Come on, Ash!"

"Well, that was a little bit awkward," Ash muttered, grabbing a stack of plates and laying them out on the table.

"Yeah, but at least he knows we love him no matter what," Misty sighed.

"Do you love _me_ no matter what?" Ash asked, causing Misty's head to snap up and her eyes to widen as she stared him down in a stunned manner. "What's with the look? I was just-oh. Oh no. Misty, no! I'm not gay, either! I swear!"

* * *

**Tehee. Poor Brock :P Misty might have been taken off guard by Ash asking if she loved him, and then even MORE taken off guard when he cried that he's not gay :P I'm sure someone somewhere has wondered this before, lol.**


	16. Perfect

**I go back to school in exactly one week. Gross. Sooo that's 7 days, and I still have 10 chapters left. Fail. So much for being my exclusively summer project XD Oh well, gotta' keep moving on! I've got too many good letters in waiting ;)**

**And this one is pretty great too :P**

* * *

**Perfect**

"Come on…almost…there! Finished!"

Misty grinned to herself and picked up the pot full of hot stew that she had been working so hard on. She thought it had come out quite excellently, if she did say so herself. Of course, she had forgone the recipe as usual. It had just looked so _boring_. Misty knew that just using ingredients off of the top of her head would make the dinner much more delicious! And Ash, who was home from another adventure and visiting the gym for dinner, would certainly love the dish as well.

At least, that's what Misty assumed.

She ladled the thick liquid into two separate bowls before carrying them out to the kitchen, where Ash was already seated at the table and watching Pikachu scarf down his own dinner.

"Dinner's here!" Misty cheered, causing Ash to beam excitedly. She placed one bowl in front of him and the other right across, where she would sit.

"Wow…this looks good!" Ash commented, staring down into his full bowl.

"Thanks, Ash!" Misty giggled. "I made it myself."

Ash's entire face paled. "Y-you?"

"Oh, don't sound so nervous!" Misty scolded. "When have I ever made anything terrible?"

"Well, that one time Brock was sick…"

"I was much younger back then," Misty refuted, turning her head away in annoyance. "I didn't know what I was doing! But I have much more experience now."

Ash gulped heavily before nervously picking up his spoon and cautiously dipping it into the stew. He spooned some out and slowly raised it to his lips, taking in the whole spoonful before Misty could even sit down. As soon as it slid down his throat, Ash's eyes widened, and he had to hold back the urge to completely gag. A strangled noise still escaped, however, and caught Misty's attention.

"What?" Misty demanded, her emerald eyes narrowing.

"It's…delicious!" Ash lied, earning a victorious smile from Misty.

"See? I told you!" Misty giggled. "I'm a real chef now!"

_Yeah, a real _bad _one, _Ash thought acidly.

While Misty wasn't looking, Ash began to push his bowl towards Pikachu, who twitched his ears curiously at the action.

"Chu?" Pikachu squeaked.

"You _love_ human food, Pikachu," Ash whispered. "Take some of this!"

Pikachu sniffed the air, not sensing anything particularly toxic before leaning forward and lapping out of the bowl. As soon as he swallowed the first lick, Pikachu sat back up and whined, his entire face turning purple as he fell over on his side.

"Pikachu!" Ash gasped.

"Pi…ka…" Pikachu muttered.

"What happened to Pikachu?" Misty asked, shifting her eyes between the obviously pained Pokémon and his trainer.

"Uh…he's just upset he can't have my dinner!" Ash chuckled. "He thinks it smells _and _looks delicious, but you know, too much human food, bad for him!"

"Pikachu pipi, pikapi!" Pikachu hissed, which translated into something along the lines of _"you tried to kill me, jerk!"_

"I should learn to make Pokémon food like Brock does," Misty mused, scooping up a spoonful of stew and raising it to her lips. "I bet Pokémon would love my cooking, too!"

As soon as she stuck the spoon in her mouth, however, Misty was just as quick to spit it out and make a disgusted face.

"BLEGH! This is DISGUSTING!" Misty shrieked.

"Hey, you said it, not me," Ash hummed.

"Did you think it tasted bad?" Misty demanded.

"Can I be honest?" Ash quipped.

"If you really have to, I guess you can-"

"It's one of the _worst_ things I've ever eaten," Ash interrupted, his eyes wide. "And when I was a kid, I used to eat lint on dares from Gary."

Misty groaned and smacked her head against the table, causing Ash to jump. He frowned and looked down at his obviously dejected friend, who was refusing to pick her head back up.

"Misty?" Ash murmured.

"I hate everything," Misty growled into the wood.

**XXX**

The next day, while Ash was visiting Professor Oak and his Pokémon at the lab, Misty had showed up at his house, eager to talk to Delia about the debacle that had occurred at the gym the previous night.

"I just wanted to impress him," Misty murmured sheepishly, her cheeks tinted a delicate red. "And instead, I just made him want to be sick."

"Oh, dear, I'm sure it wasn't _that_ bad," Delia comforted. Misty looked up and frowned at the older woman, who smiled sympathetically in response. "Okay, so both Ash _and _Pikachu told me it was that bad."

Misty groaned and buried her face in her hands, shaking her head as she slumped her shoulders. "I'll never win."

"Misty, just because you're not good at cooking right now doesn't mean you can't get any better!" Delia giggled. "Cooking takes _a lot_ of practice. Fortunately, I've had plenty of it! And, what's more, I know for a fact that Ash will be very hungry when he comes back from the lab!"

Misty's eyes widened at the notion. "Do you mean…?"

"I'll give you a quick cooking lesson," Delia finished with a nod. "Trust me, I'll whip you into shape in no time!"

"Oh, thank you, Mrs. Ketchum!" Misty practically squealed, clasping her hands together in front of her chest.

"Misty, please," Delia purred sweetly. "Call me Delia!"

_And hopefully one day you'll be calling me mother-in-law! _Delia thought excitedly.

**XXX**

The cooking lesson with Delia had been, for lack of a better word, exhausting.

The older woman had almost fainted upon hearing that Misty's typical approach to cooking was ignoring the recipe outright and going with ingredients that looked or sounded interesting to her. That had become Misty's _first_ lesson: always follow the recipe, no matter how boring it sounds.

Delia went over everything with Misty: from how to properly measure the ingredients to how to determine cooking time, even how the food should be presented.

"I didn't realize how much work actually goes into cooking," Misty murmured, examining all of the prepared food that sat on the counter before her and Delia.

"Well, it normally doesn't take that long…" Delia laughed sheepishly.

"Sorry," Misty apologized, knowing exactly what that meant. "I guess I'm a bit of a slow learner. When it comes to stuff like this, anyway."

"You don't have to apologize for anything, dear," Delia sighed laughingly. "It's okay to be a slow learner! Besides, I think you did great."

"I guess we won't know for sure until Ash tries the food," Misty grumbled, staring down the deep dish pizza like it was her ultimate enemy.

"Mom! I'm home!"

Misty jumped as the door swung open and Ash loudly announced himself. Delia, on the other hand, was used to Ash's sudden entrances and hadn't been taken off guard.

"Welcome back, sweetheart!" Delia warbled. "Wipe your feet before you step on my floors!"

The boy chuckled sheepishly and stepped back outside, stomping rhythmically on the door mat before hopping back inside and closing the door behind him.

"Man, I'm starved!" Ash groaned, walking into the kitchen and stopping in his tracks as soon as he saw the redhead standing at the counter. "Misty? What are you doing here?"

"She came for a visit!" Delia replied cheerfully. "Isn't that lovely?"

"Uh, yeah," Ash answered calmly. He then noticed the pizza behind Misty, and his entire face paled. "Did…did she make that?"

"I'm standing right here!" Misty shouted. "And as a matter of fact, Mr. Pokémon Master, yeah! I _did _make it!"

"I'm still so hungry from last night," Ash whined.

"Oh, Ash, don't be such a baby," Delia clicked her tongue. "I helped Misty out with lunch! And I bet you're going to love it. Now, sit down and stop complaining, or else you won't get a thing to eat."

Ash pressed his lips together and threw himself into a chair at the table, batting his eyelashes at his mother. Misty rolled her eyes and leaned against the counter as she watched Delia pick up the pan and bring it over to the table, putting it down in front of Ash and cutting out a slice to put on a plate. Still looking apprehensive, Ash picked up the slice and slowly opened his mouth, taking a small bite out of the corner and chewing the bit while shifting his eyes around the room.

"Well?" Misty huffily demanded, although there was genuine curiosity behind her voice as well. "What do you think?"

"It's…not bad!" Ash chuckled. "In fact, it's pretty good!"

"Really?" Misty murmured.

"Yeah!" Ash continued. "I guess what they say is right. Practice makes perfect!"

Misty's smile turned into a full blown grin. "Perfect? You think my cooking is perfect?"

Ash's eyes widened and he held his hand out towards the gym leader. "Whoa, one step at a time, Mist. You can't just go from being _absolutely horrendous_ last night to _totally perfect_ this afternoon. Let's start with _good _first."

Misty scowled, but that expression soon melted away and she let out an exasperated sigh instead. "Fine. I'll take it."

* * *

**I think Misty has the ability to be a good chef. You know, if she would actually FOLLOW THE RECIPE and not try to get all "creative" :P That episode where Brock gets sick and she and Ash have to do everything is a classic. **


	17. Quaint

**Letter Q! I can't believe how fast I got here :P This makes me happy!**

* * *

**Quaint**

"Want to know what my dream is, Ash?"

"Uh, I know what your dream is, Mist. It's become the greatest water Pokémon trainer of all time."

"Yeah. But…I meant my other dream."

Ash pushed himself up by his elbows and stared over at Misty, who was sprawled out on the grass beside him. "You have another dream?"

Misty giggled and closed her eyes in bliss. "Mmhm. I have lots of dreams."

Ash narrowed his eyes and folded his arms across his chest. "Well then…how am I supposed to guess _another _dream?"

"Because you should know me well enough by now to be able to do it."

Sighing, Ash lay back down and stared up into the sky, clutching the emerald green blades of grass in his fingers. "Well, I give up. Tell me what your other dream is."

"Do you see all of the little cottages around here?"

Ash tilted his head back and surveyed the small houses that were scattered behind them. There was no specific order to pattern to where each cottage had been placed, but they all held a similar look. Each one was adorned in airy, pastel colors: blue, green, and yellow, with frothy white trimming and classic wooden shutters that gave way to short, flowy curtains that blew in the sea wind.

"Yeah?" Ash prodded.

"It's always been my dream, ever since I was a little girl, to live in one of them."

Ash bit his lip and sat up all the way to get a better look at the cottages. "It certainly is peaceful up here."

"Isn't it?" Misty exhaled. "The smell of the ocean, and the fresh, salty air. Plus, it's so quiet and serene!"

"It is," Ash agreed.

"Wouldn't it be wonderful to have a party in one of them?" Misty continued, her voice becoming dreamier and more distant. "Just imagine it. A lawn party on the Cape. With a barbeque and those beautiful paper lanterns!"

"What would you have a party for?" Ash questioned.

"Anything, really," Misty hummed. "Just for fun."

"You could have one for a reason, too," Ash added.

"Of course."

"Well…give me an example."

"A birthday," Misty replied simply. "Or…to celebrate some kind of milestone. Or maybe even a wedding party!"

"A wedding party?" Ash repeated.

"Yeah," Misty sighed adoringly. "You know…like…the reception."

"Oh…"

"I just think it would be a lovely place to live," Misty finished, nodding slowly to herself.

"Yeah…" Ash trailed off slowly.

Now it was Misty's turn to push herself up onto her elbows and glance at her boyfriend. "What does that mean?"

"Nothing," Ash replied innocently. "I think that these cottages are nice, too! They're very you."

"Aren't they?" Misty giggled.

"But…they're so small," Ash continued, looking over his shoulder at the tiny houses once again.

"I like small," Misty contended with a shrug. "That means less to clean up."

"True," Ash conceded.

"And we all know how big of a mess _you_ make."

Ash sighed and tilted his head back. "Fun-ny," he drawled sarcastically.

"I wasn't trying to be funny. I was being serious."

"Besides, I wasn't talking about _cleaning,_" Ash murmured, putting his head back down to look over at Misty. "I was talking about something else."

"Oh, really?" Misty questioned, Ash's sly tone making her smile. "And what _were _you talking about, then?"

"I meant like…if we had a family or something…" Ash muttered, his whole face delicately blushing.

Misty's eyes widened, her smile disappearing into a thoroughly shaped 'O' that perfectly defined her feeling of shock. "Y-you…you mean…you mean us? Like…you and I?"

"Or…or just you…" Ash blurted, the red on his face intensifying. "You know. Whatever you want."

Resting her head on her shoulder, Misty smiled once again and tried to fight it. She only managed to shrink down the grin to the smallest extent when she looked back up at Ash. Fortunately, he had already averted his gaze out of embarrassment. "Well, I suppose it would depend on how many children I…or…you _and_ I have."

"Children?" Ash repeated, his eye twitching. "That's…multiple."

"Mmhm."

"Uh…how many were you thinking of?"

"Well, if we had one kid, we could still live in a cottage," Misty mused. "It might be a little bit tight, but it would still be comfortable. Two would be a tight fit. And three…well, there's no way we could live in a cottage with three kids."

Ash twisted his mouth and nervously rubbed the back of his neck. "Three, huh?"

"Maybe," Misty murmured thoughtfully. "Maybe four or five. I don't know."

Ash sat up straight, his eyes widening. "I didn't agree to that!"

"Of course you didn't," Misty snickered. "We're not married! Hell, we're not even _engaged._"

"Right…" Ash snickered, nervously wringing his hands together. "You're right!"

"I know I am."

"So…living in a sea cottage is really your dream, huh?" Ash murmured.

"_One_ of them," Misty corrected.

"Okay, one of them," Ash sighed. "Do you have any other dreams I should know about?"

"I have other dreams. You just can't know about them. Not yet, anyway."

Ash frowned at this and leaned forward, closer to Misty. "Why not?!"

"It's a secret."

"Misty!"

"Oh, Ash, just learn to be patient," Misty groaned, although her lips were beginning to curve into a smile. "Besides, I gave you some hints. And you gave yourself some as well."

Ash blinked and leaned back, staring at his enchanted girlfriend the entire time.

"Hints?" Ash murmured.

Still smiling, Misty rolled over onto her side and listened to the waves crashing down below as she hid half of her face in the fluffy grass that covered the ground of Cerulean Cape; her most favorite place in the entire world.

_You're so dense, Ash. So, so dense. But I love you just as much. I'll never understand why, but I do._

* * *

**Aaah, I love writing about Cerulean Cape. It sounds so peaceful, doesn't it? Of course Misty would want to live there...with Ash ;)**


	18. Red

**Update numero due for the day. I'm on a roll, guys. I also just wanted to finish this before my friends came over, and I did! Score :P**

* * *

**Red**

Misty hated a lot of things.

Bugs, carrots, and peppers, of course, were at the top of the list. She also hated people who were stuck-up, or know it alls. High heels and make up were included as well, but she was getting better with the latter.

One of Misty's most despised things was not being able to fall asleep at night.

It drove her absolutely _insane_. Misty was almost always tired at night, but sometimes, she just couldn't get her eyes to stay closed or her mind to drift off. She would just roll back and forth in her sleeping bag for what felt like forever, feeling as though she were slowly losing her mind.

What Misty _loved_, however, was to talk. And talk and talk and talk. Aside from the fact that she was a natural born chatterbox, she enjoyed having the company that a conversation brought. Long, easy talks often mellowed her out, especially in an instance like this where she just couldn't fall asleep.

"Ash?"

"Mmmm…"

Even if it meant disturbing someone who wasn't having a similar problem.

"What's your favorite color?" Misty whispered.

Ash groaned again and finally managed to crack one eye open. He looked at Misty, lying on her back in her red, bubble printed sleeping bag, staring up into the late night sky through the tops of the forest trees. She was definitely wide awake, but he wasn't.

"Misty, go to sleep," Ash muttered tiredly.

"A lot of people think my favorite color is blue, because of the water, but it isn't," Misty continued, blatantly ignoring Ash's suggestion.

"Fascinating," Ash exhaled, rolling over in his sleeping bag so his back was facing Misty. He had hoped she would take this as a hint, but of course she didn't. She just kept going.

"Then some people think it's yellow or red, because I always wear those colors," Misty mused. "But…those aren't my favorite colors, either. I just think they complement my skin tone."

"Mmm," Ash groaned tiredly.

"It's definitely not pink. Pink is _way_ too girly."

…

"I bet you can't even guess my favorite color," Misty hummed.

"Oh my…" Ash grumbled, burying his face into his sleeping bag. He was almost hoping he would suffocate so he wouldn't have to listen to Misty's rambling anymore.

"Want to guess?" Misty trilled.

"NO!" Ash screamed loudly enough so his voice wouldn't be as terribly muffled by the fabric of his sleeping bag.

"It's green," Misty blurted, Ash's shoulders slumping in defeat. "I don't know why, but I've always found the color green to be so soothing! It's kind of watery too, I guess. Not as much as blue, obviously. But isn't mint green such a lovely shade? And forest green is so dark and cool! Of course, emeralds are beautiful. A lot of people tell me that my eyes look like emeralds."

Ash started to feel his lungs burning from the lack of oxygen, and despite his original intentions, pulled away from the material and sucked in a deep breath, desperate to refill his lungs.

"I told you _my_ favorite color," Misty murmured. "So…now you have to tell me yours."

Tilting his head back so it sank deeper into the material of his sleeping bag, Ash squeezed his eyes shut and let out a loud snore, hoping to trick Misty into thinking he was asleep.

"That was the _worst_ fake snore I've ever heard, Ketchum. I know you're awake."

_I'm only awake because you won't shut up, _Ash thought acidly.

"Tell me what your favorite color is."

…

"Or else I won't shut up for the rest of the night."

"Fine, Misty! Fine!" Ash moaned, rolling onto his back and throwing his arms down atop his sleeping bag. "My favorite color is red, okay? Is that what you want? It's red. There's your answer. Red."

"Red?" Misty repeated thoughtfully.

"Yeah," Ash muttered. "Got a problem with it?"

"No," Misty giggled at the notion. "I just…never really pegged you as a _red_ person. I thought you were going to say blue."

"Why?"

"You wear a lot of blue," Misty explained. "Your sleeping bag is blue."

"My mom buys all of my stuff," Ash sighed. "And she just buys a lot of blue."

"Oh."

"Can I go to sleep now?" Ash asked miserably.

"First you have to tell me _why_ your favorite color is red," Misty reasoned.

"Seriously, Misty?" Ash groaned.

"I'm genuinely curious!"

"Well I'm genuinely _tired._"

"Just tell me," Misty pleaded. "Then you can go to sleep."

Ash furrowed his brow and looked over at Misty, silently noting how the moonlight shined in her beautiful green eyes. "Promise?"

"I promise," Misty whispered.

Ash bit his lip and closed his eyes. "It's…it's so embarrassing."

"I won't laugh at you," Misty promised. "Please, just tell me. I want to know!"

Inhaling deeply, Ash squeezed his eyes shut more tightly as he responded in a rushed manner, "my favorite color is red because of your hair."

Misty's eyebrows shot up her forehead, while Ash slowly and timidly opened his eyes. "W-wait. R-really? It's…it's because of my hair?"

"Yeah…" Ash crooned. "Your hair is so bright. It's always reminded me of fire. It's so different! The brightest hair I've ever seen. It's perfect for you."

"Ash…" Misty breathed, her entire face blushing.

"When I see fire, I think of your hair," Ash continued through a powerful yawn. "And when I think of your hair, I think of red. And that makes me happy. So…red. Red is my favorite color. And that's why."

Misty smiled to herself and looked down at the ground, nervously wringing her hands beneath the cover of her sleeping bag. "Ash…that's the sweetest thing I've ever heard you say. Thank you…for telling me that. I…I always knew…I knew that you and I…we were…perfect. More than that. And, Ash, I always wanted to tell you-"

Misty was interrupted by a snore, one far more delicate than Ash's fake wheeze from before. Looking up from the ground, Misty was stunned to see that Ash had fallen fast asleep, and subsequently, not heard a single word she just said.

"Never mind," Misty sighed, closing her eyes as well. "I'll tell you on another night when I can't fall asleep."

* * *

**Obviously, this is pre-dating Ash and Misty. A fun, innocent one. I mostly just wanted to have Misty annoying him at night and preventing him from sleeping, and also have Ash reveal his fondness for Misty's hair. Thus...this one shot was born :3**


	19. Size

**This one is fun. It's sort of sexy (hey, another S word!) without actually being sexy. That doesn't make much sense, does it? Just read the chapter. You'll see what I mean :P**

* * *

**Size**

"Oh, this is horrible!"

Ash cocked an eyebrow as that tortured cry reached his ears. Pikachu squeaked curiously as well, wondering what in the world could have provoked such anguish.

"It's Misty," Ash murmured, narrowing his eyes slightly.

"Chu."

"I wonder what she's so upset about."

"Pi-ka."

"Guess I should go find out," Ash sighed, turning towards the bedroom door. He placed his hand on the knob and twisted it, pushing the door in to grant himself entrance into the room. As soon as Misty came into view, Ash's eyes widened, and Pikachu, who had been expecting the sight even _less _than his trainer, shrieked out of surprise and immediately jumped off of his trainer's shoulder in order to hide beneath the bed.

Misty was standing in front of the floor length mirror in the corner of the room, half naked with only a pair of miniscule denim shorts on her bottoms and a lacey, lime green bra covering her breasts. She had been only slightly startled by Ash's sudden entrance, though she made no move to cover herself any further.

"Uh…what are you doing, Mist?" Ash asked. "Why are you…like that? I mean, I'm not complaining, but…I'm curious."

"Nothing much," Misty grumbled. "Just staring at my chest and lamenting the size of it."

Ash tilted his head to the side and blinked innocently at the response. "Do you do that often?"

"Yeah, but you're never around for it," Misty affirmed. "Speaking of which, why are you home so early?"

"It's a long, boring story that's not as interesting as your boobs," Ash answered frankly, causing Misty to roll her eyes. "Seriously, let's keep talking about those instead."

"You're such a boy!" Misty complained, self-consciously folding her arms over her chest.

"I am not a boy, I'm a _man_," Ash corrected with a small huff.

"Whatever," Misty groaned.

"Besides, I'm not trying to be perverted," Ash continued. "Even though you _do_ know I love that asset of yours. I mean let's talk about why you're judging yourself so harshly."

"I don't want to talk about it!" Misty whined. "Not with you, anyway."

"Why not?" Ash sounded genuinely inquisitive.

"Uh…because you're my _husband?_" Misty bit as though it were obvious.

"That's even more reason why you _can_ talk to me about it," Ash refuted. "You know that I love you no matter what. I won't judge you. And I don't like to know that you're upset! Especially about your own body. So, tell me why you hate your chest."

"Isn't it obvious?" Misty moaned.

"Nope," Ash quipped. "I think your boobs are pretty great."

Misty threw her arms down to her sides, staring at Ash with wide eyes and a dropped jaw as though he had just said the most blasphemous thing she'd ever heard. "Of course they're not great, Ash! They're awful!"

"But why?" Ash murmured.

"They're too small!" Misty cried, her eyes fully narrowed at this point.

"Too small?" Ash repeated.

"You heard me," Misty grumbled.

"But…I think they're perfect," Ash replied innocently.

Misty raised an eyebrow and shot Ash a look that could be defined as _really? _"So, you're telling me that you wouldn't prefer me to have a wife with a more pronounced chest?"

"No," Ash chirped.

"That's a lie," Misty muttered.

"Misty, why would I lie to you?" Ash pressed. "I would _never _lie to you. I love you just the way you are! You're perfect."

"I guess I shouldn't have expected you to understand," Misty sighed, dejectedly sitting herself on the foot of her and Ash's bed. "_You_ don't have a size problem."

"What are you…oh," Ash breathed, blushing slightly and sheepishly crossing his legs. "Let's…not bring me into this conversation. We're talking about you!"

"Yeah, and how sad my chest is," Misty growled.

"No, only _you_ said that," Ash corrected. "And you know that I don't agree with you. I think you're great just the way you are. Big boobs aren't everything, you know."

Misty sighed and rested her head in her hand. "My sisters sure made it seem that way growing up. They _always _made fun of me for my size! I'm so much smaller than them…part of the reason I get called the runt."

"Wait…so your sisters' boobs are real?!" Ash gasped. Misty glared up at her husband, who chuckled and blushed as he sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. "Heh…don't tell them I said that."

"I guess I just got unlucky," Misty concluded, shrugging her shoulders. "I always did. I'm not as pretty as them, or busty as them, or-"

"Misty, cut it out!" Ash whined. Kneeling in front of his wife, Ash held her hands and smiled at her, continuing, "You're beautiful. You're _so_ beautiful! You can't even compare to your sisters. I love you for who you are, and I always have. I don't want you to change anything about yourself, or wish for any of that. You're my Mist, and that's why I love you."

Misty smiled sweetly at her husband and let out a soft coo, leaning forward so she could wrap her arms around his chest and rest her head on his shoulder. "You're the best husband in the entire world, Ash. Did you know that?"

"You tell me that a lot," Ash chuckled softly, kissing the side of Misty's head. "But it never gets old."

"Thank you," Misty whispered, squeezing Ash more tightly. "You always know how to make me feel better."

"I try," Ash murmured, rubbing Misty's back with his fingertips.

Their tight, comforting hug, however, was soon interrupted by a soft and desperate, "Pikapi? Pikachupi pika pi-chu?"

Misty pulled away from Ash and stared into his eyes, which were shimmering with amusement. "What did Pikachu just say?"

"Oh…that," Ash chuckled softly. "He kind of wants you to put your shirt back on."

"Oh!" Misty gasped, her cheeks turning pink. "I'm so sorry, Pikachu!"

Pikachu, who was covering his beady black eyes with his paws, waited until Misty had pulled her royal blue shirt back over her head. Once it was on, he was able to remove his paws from his eyes and smile at his trainer's wife.

"Better?" Misty giggled.

"Pi-ka!" Pikachu squeaked.

"I don't know why you get so embarrassed, buddy," Ash sighed, getting back to his feet and pulling Misty up with him. "You really missed some great stuff!"

"Pi…" Pikachu exhaled.

"Oh, Ash," Misty sighed playfully, shaking her head. "What am I going to do with you, you crazy boy?"

"Hey!" Ash cried, wagging a finger at Misty.

"Sorry," Misty breathed. "What am I going to do with you, you crazy _man?_"

"Better," Ash hummed with a smirk.

* * *

**Sort of no plot. Sort of. Just Ash making Misty feel better about herself. And making jokes about her sisters :P**


	20. Trapped

**I finally finished T! That's fun! But also not, because I've now reached the part of the story where all of the hard letters begin. And of course that would happen once I'm back at school.**

**Maybe I'll pick up some big words with those funky letters and my life will become a little easier :P**

* * *

**Trapped**

"OW! Ash, you kicked me!"

"Well, it's kind of hard _not_ to!"

"No it's not! Just keep your damn legs to yourself!"

"Hey, _I'm_ trying to get us out! _You're_ not doing _anything!_"

"Fine, you want me to do something?"

"OW! Don't kick me in the face!"

"_I _won't kick _you_ in the face when _you_ quit kicking _me_ in the stomach!"

"I told you I'm not doing it on purpose!"

"So? It still hurts."

"Yeah, and so does _you_ kicking _me!_"

"Alright, look," Misty sighed, finally forcing herself to calm down. "Obviously, we're not in the best situation right now. And arguing with one another isn't going to solve anything. So, I think that you and I both need to lay off and focus all of our energy on coming up with a way to get out of here."

She and Ash were currently stuck in a _very _familiar situation: trapped inside one of Team Rocket's ruses. It was the old "step in a rope and get swept up by a net" trick, and now the two trainers were dangling several feet off the ground from the branch of a tree. It had only been a few minutes, but Ash and Misty had spent the entire time arguing. And Misty, quite frankly, had gotten sick of it. She just wanted to get out of the stupid net and back on the ground.

Safely, of course.

"I bet my nails are sharp enough to break through the net," Misty mused.

"Bet not," Ash scoffed.

Misty snarled at the boy but didn't lash out at him again like she had before. Instead, she simply began to dig her nails into the net's seemingly thin twine, which was actually a lot stronger than it appeared.

"See? I told you," Ash remarked, leading Misty to roll her eyes. "The net is a lot stronger than you think it is. How do you think it's holding us up so well?"

Misty's eyes widened, and she finally turned her head to once again look at Ash. "Are you calling me fat?"

"What? No!" Ash practically yelled. "Where would you even _get_ that idea? You just want an excuse to yell at me!"

"I do not!" Misty argued. "I can't help it that you're being stupid and _forcing _me to yell at you!"

"Yeah, okay Misty, whatever," Ash huffed, leaning back against the net. "I thought you said we had to quit arguing."

"We do!"

"So stop arguing."

Misty could feel her entire face turn bright red as her eyes narrowed and her fingers curled up into tight fists. She was absolutely ready to beat Ash senseless. Maybe if she punched him hard enough, his body would break through the net.

His strong, broad, muscular, solid body.

Growling to herself, Misty shook out her head and continued to glare at Ash, though the red on her face had all but disappeared and her fists had loosened.

"I don't hear _you_ coming up with any grand ideas to get us out of here," Misty remarked smartly.

"Because I kind of know there's no way out," Ash replied smoothly.

"Oh, really?" Misty quipped. "The great, always positive and chipper Ash Ketchum is losing hope after being trapped in a net for over five minutes?"

"I'm not losing hope," Ash calmly retorted. "I've just gotten stuck in enough of these nets to know there's no way out until someone comes around and cuts us down. Namely Brock."

"How he never gets caught in these traps with us, I'll never know," Misty muttered under her breath.

"Because he's smart enough to run after girls and relentlessly flirt with them," Ash sighed.

Now _this_ caught Misty's attention. She whipped her head around and threw Ash a wide eyed stare, to which he was completely unaffected by. "What do you mean smart enough? You're going to tell me that _you're_ going to start flirting with girls?"

"No way!" Ash practically laughed at the idea. "I just mean that Brock's craziness always seems to keep him out of trouble. It's like he's got a sixth sense for it."

"Yeah, or he's just ridiculously horny," Misty sniped.

"Either way," Ash chuckled. "But still, _we're_ the ones stuck in the net. He's not."

"That's very true, as much as I hate to admit it," Misty grumbled. Looking out of the net dejectedly, Misty softly thought aloud, "I wonder when Brock is going to come find us."

"Hopefully soon," Ash murmured. "I don't want to be in this net for hours on end. We've done _that_ enough times before, too."

"Yeah, I'm already bored," Misty sighed.

"And hungry," Ash added.

"Oh, you're always hungry!" Misty moaned, throwing herself back out of exasperation. Unfortunately, it seemed to have slipped her mind that she and Ash were still very close together in a small net, and she wound up throwing herself right down on the teenaged trainer sitting behind her.

"OW!" Ash whined, his neck bending unpleasantly he was pressed against the side of the net. "MISTY!"

"I'm sorry!" Misty quickly apologized, trying to get herself back up. "I forgot!"

"How could you _forget?!_" Ash demanded, wiggling strongly and trying to get Misty off himself.

"Ash, quit moving around like that!" Misty barked. "You're making it harder to get up!"

"I'm trying to make it easier!" Ash argued.

"Well, you're not!"

"Well, _you're_ not getting up fast enough!"

"Because it's not easy!"

"Fine, then I'll just push you up with my hands!"

"What are you-DID YOU JUST TOUCH MY CHEST?!"

"It was an accident!"

Misty growled and whipped her head around as well as she possibly could in her current situation. Ash now had his hands held up in the air like a sign of surrender, his entire face as red as the circles on Pikachu's cheeks. That lucky little Pokémon, Misty remembered, was stuck with Brock.

He wouldn't have to see his trainer get pummeled by the very furious gym leader who _refused_ to admit that Ash's accidental touch had sent shivers up her spine.

* * *

**Don't lie, Misty. You liked it. You want more. **

**I always loved it when Ash and Misty were stuck in a net together :P The most prominent example being Bulbasaur's Mysterious Garden. You know, the one where Ash makes up a story about Brock being kidnapped by pirates. Classic.**


	21. Umbrella

**Letter U here! Getting into the more difficult letters now. This one wasn't too bad to come up with...**

* * *

**Umbrella**

It had started off as such a lovely day.

The sun had been shining with not a single cloud in the sky. The air was warm, a gentle breeze blowing through every few minutes. It was calm and quiet, and everything seemed to be at peace. Wanting to take advantage of such a beautiful day, Misty had managed to convince Ash to have a picnic with her at the park. He had been a little reluctant at first, but then decided that spending time with Misty _and_ eating simultaneously couldn't have been all that bad. So, he agreed to the trip, and he was glad he had. It turned out to be a great afternoon, and both he and Misty had a great time chatting and enjoying one another's company.

That was, until the rain came.

It was all very sudden. The clouds rolled in, blocking out the sun, and the winds grew a little harsher. Before Ash or Misty could even bat an eyelash, drops of water began to fall from the sky, dampening their bodies and the lovely picnic that Misty had worked so hard to prepare.

"Ugh, stupid rain!" Misty hissed.

"It's okay, Mist," Ash comforted his frustrated girlfriend. "We had a really nice time, right? We can just do it again another time!"

"I guess you're right…" Misty sighed.

"Here, I'll help you clean everything up," Ash assured, stuffing all of the leftover food back into the basket before Misty could even attempt to do so.

"Oh, Ash, you're so sweet," Misty murmured, a delicate blush overtaking her face.

"Don't mention it!" Ash chuckled.

As he folded up the blanket they had been sitting on, Misty reached into the basket and pulled out a large, blue and white umbrella, which she hastily opened up and held over her head.

"Ah, much better," Misty hummed happily. "Now my hair won't get ruined!"

"You care about that kind of stuff?" Ash scoffed.

"No…not really," Misty admitted. "Only when I'm with you, I guess."

"Well, you don't have to do that," Ash declared. "I don't care how your hair looks. I always think you're beautiful, no matter what!"

"When did you get so sweet?" Misty sighed, shaking her head as she tried to rid the blush on her cheeks.

"I've always been this sweet," Ash quipped, getting back to his feet and holding the now closed picnic basket in his hand by the handle. "It just took you a little while to notice."

"Ha ha, very funny," Misty teased. "Now, come on."

"Come on where?" Ash questioned. "Home?"

"Well, yeah, your house," Misty huffed. "But…I mostly meant underneath my umbrella."

"You brought an umbrella?" Ash squeaked, staring up at the blue and white covering. "Did you know it was going to rain?"

"No, I just always come prepared," Misty giggled. "See? It paid off! Now, get under here before you get soaked."

"I don't need to stand under a stupid umbrella," Ash refuted. "I've got my hat!"

"Your hat?" Misty repeated dully.

"Yeah!" Ash chirped. "It'll keep me dry!"

"What? No it won't!" Misty exclaimed. "You're going to get absolutely drenched! Get under the umbrella!"

"Misty, I don't _need_ your umbrella," Ash groaned. "Umbrellas are for the weak!"

Misty shot her boyfriend an unappreciative look, to which he blushed and chuckled nervously. "Look, Mr. Hot Shot, I don't need you getting sick, alright? Your mother would have my head!"

"I've run through the rain my _entire life_ without an umbrella," Ash countered, jogging ahead of Misty. "I'll be fine!"

"Can't you at least walk?" Misty grumbled. "You catching a cold is bad enough, but slipping on a patch of wet grass and breaking your neck is even worse."

Ash rolled his eyes, but nevertheless, he skidded to a halt and allowed Misty to catch up to him before continuing with a slower pace. Shifting her eyes to the side, Misty sneakily tried to cover Ash's head with her umbrella, but he was keen to her antics and was having no part of them.

"Nice try, Mist," Ash snickered as he side stepped out of the umbrella's coverage. "But I'm not going to walk under that umbrella!"

"You think you're real macho, don't you?" Misty exhaled.

"That's not what this is about!" Ash argued.

"Oh?" Misty trilled. "So what's it about then?"

"Pride."

"Right. Your macho pride."

"Uh…no?"

"Ash, come on," Misty hummed. "I've known you long enough to know what your true intentions are. You just want to look tough in front of me. You want to be the _man_. That's it."

"Nuh uh!" Ash argued, his whole face going red.

"Chill out!" Misty giggled. "No reason to get so worked up."

"I wasn't getting worked up!" Ash cried, his blush only intensifying as he wailed.

"Whatever you say, Ashy," Misty warbled, her eyes glinting with mischievousness.

Ash huffed and shook his head, feeling the drops of water fly off of his hair and skin. Misty noticed this right away, but chose not to say anything for fear of another crazy outburst from her flustered boyfriend.

The rainfall only continued to grow harsher and harsher as the couple made their way back towards Ash's house. Misty, of course, was safe beneath her umbrella. She was as dry as could be. Ash, on the other hand, was not as lucky. By the time they actually reached the house and got inside, in fact, Ash looked like he had just jumped into a pool fully clothed. His shirt and pants were drenched and sticking to his skin, while his pitch black hair was soaked and completely matted down. His hat was also saturated with rain water, and it looked as though it had melded onto the top of his head.

"Gross…" Ash whined, plucking at his wet sleeve.

"I _told_ you to get under the umbrella," Misty sighed knowingly. "But you didn't want to listen."

"Hey, I may be a little wet, but I survived," Ash scoffed. "It'll be fine. Trust me."

"ASH KETCHUM! WHY ARE SO WET? YOU'RE GOING TO STAIN THE CARPET!"

Ash gulped and hesitantly looked up the stairs, where his mother was standing with a wide eyed stare and a gaping mouth. Pikachu, who was held in her arms, chuckled at his trainer's misfortune, knowing the boy was going to be in an awful lot of trouble for tracking so much water into the house.

"Oh yeah," Misty trilled sarcastically, though a smile had grown on her face. "It'll be _just _fine."

* * *

**Basically, Ash just wants to impress his girlfriend. Kind of like Misty with the cooking. Except Ash wants to look all tough ;)**


	22. Vindictive

**Uuuugh school. I finally got V done! Go me. This took a lot longer than it should have. My apologies. College and dance and sorority and all that stuff. But only 4 more left after this one!**

* * *

**Vindictive**

"Ugh…so tired…"

Misty moaned and groaned to herself as she tossed her duffel bag against one of the couches in the living room of Ash's house. She had just finished up her day working at the gym, and had come over to visit, just as Delia had always encouraged her to. Misty usually felt like she was imposing, but at the moment she was very tired and hungry, and Misty knew that if she went to her own home, her sisters would just bug her and then present her with some kind of inedible meal.

Needless to say, she wasn't in the mood for that today.

Striding into the kitchen, Misty found a note stuck on the refrigerator that was addressed to her. It was written in neat, experienced script, obviously by Delia's hand. Smirking to herself, Misty pulled off the yellow sheet of paper and scanned her emerald eyes over the writing.

_Hello, Misty!_

_I'm so excited you decided to come over! I'll be out at the market by the time you arrive, and Ash has gone out for a run, which is probably why you haven't heard anything crash or explode within the first five minutes of arriving. _

_Anyway, since I won't be back for a little while, I've left some freshly baked cookies on the counter just for you! Please help yourself to them, and we'll chat when I return!_

_Love, Delia_

"Aw, she's so sweet!" Misty giggled to herself. Carrying the note in her hand, Misty walked over to the counter, her hopes soaring for the sweet treats that Delia had left her. Once she got there, however, all Misty was met with was an empty plate, sprinkled with nothing more than crumbs. "Hey!"

As soon as she let out that dramatic, gasping cry, the front door swung open, Ash charging in with Pikachu right behind him.

"Hey there, Mist!" Ash greeted cheerfully, sounding only slightly breathless. "You finally came!"

"Wh-where are my cookies?" Misty whined.

"Your cookies?" Ash reiterated.

"Chu?" Pikachu squeaked.

"Your mom made me cookies, but they're all gone!" Misty complained. "I didn't even get to have _one!_"

"Oh, those were just for you?" Ash murmured.

Misty narrowed her eyes at the teenaged boy, who suddenly looked rather sheepish…if not embarrassed. "Ash…"

"Heh…I didn't realize that…I kind of thought Mom left them there for anyone…namely me," Ash admitted.

"So you ate them _all?!_" Misty snapped.

"I was hungry!" Ash cried.

"You're _such_ a pig!" Misty stormed. "I mean, really, who even eats _that_ many cookies at one time?"

"Me!" Ash argued. "For your information, I'm a growing boy! I need all of the food I can get! That's what Mom says, anyway."

"When your mom find out you ate all of her cookies, you might not be growing for much longer," Misty quipped. "Hell, _I _might not let you grow for much longer after this stunt!"

At this, Ash pouted and cocked his head to the side. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You're going to pay for eating my cookies," Misty sneered, her emerald eyes glinting with anger. "Just you wait and see."

"Oh, I'm _so_ afraid," Ash drawled sarcastically, earning a growl from his…half-girlfriend. Ash wasn't exactly sure where he and Misty stood at the moment. It was complicated, he'd say.

"You should be," Misty bit, marching straight out of the room and roughly brushing up against Ash as she did so. Ash looked over his shoulder and watched her go, his brow furrowing in bewilderment.

"She's such a drama queen."

**XXX**

After showering and changing his clothes, Ash peered out of the bathroom and looked around cautiously before taking another step. He may have considered Misty a bit of a drama queen, but that didn't mean he wasn't a little bit afraid of her. After all, she could get pretty scary when she was mad. And she had _definitely_ been mad about the cookies.

Fortunately, his room seemed to be pretty untouched. Nothing misplaced and no hanging wires or potential death scenarios. Smiling, Ash walked out of his room and down the stairs, to where Misty was reclining on the couch in the living room reading a magazine.

"I should be afraid, huh?" Ash remarked teasingly. "Yeah, you _really _got me, Mist."

The redhead simply continued scanning the magazine with her eyes, paying Ash no mind. The black haired trainer was unaffected by her silence and plopped himself down on the couch next to her, folding his arms behind his head.

"Ah, you've got to step up your game!" Ash complained. "You're getting all soft on me."

Misty just continued reading, not even making a sound in response. Ash sulked slightly and looked down at her lap, where Pikachu was curled up into a ball, half-asleep. That meant the little mouse wasn't even going to _attempt_ to help his trainer.

"Come on, Mist," Ash prodded, his tone pleading. "I was just joking! You still scare me, ya know."

The gym leader did nothing. No hum, no murmur, no nothing. Ash, in turn, narrowed his eyes and folded his arms across his chest. He looked quite a bit like a miserable young child, but Misty obviously didn't care.

"Misty, please talk to me!" Ash finally blurted, leaning over and practically settling himself in Misty's lap, disturbing the electric type who was already nestled there. "I don't like it when you ignore me! I feel like I'm invisible!"

At this, Misty smirked and finally allowed her eyes to fall down towards Ash, who was pouting like a baby Growlithe and desperately gripping onto her legs. "You learned your lesson now, didn't you?"

"Huh?" Ash murmured.

"I told you that you were going to pay for eating all of my cookies," Misty hummed. "And you did."

"But…but…"

"Sometimes I don't have to get _physical_ revenge, you know," Misty remarked. "In fact, you seem to crack _a lot_ quicker when the revenge is mental."

"Well, I can get over a little bruise or something," Ash muttered sheepishly. "My feelings aren't so easy to fix."

"Aw, that's so cute! And sad!" Misty crooned, causing Ash to blush. "I love your gentle side."

"I don't have a gentle side!" Ash protested.

"Oh, shush, yes you do," Misty softly scolded.

"Nuh uh!"

"There's no shame in admitting you have feelings, Ash," Misty continued. "Besides, I already know how you operate."

"Wait…what?" Ash muttered.

"I knew that ignoring you would be a lot more effective than hurting you physically," Misty explained.

"Oh…" Ash breathed, turning his head and staying silent for a few moments before adding, "I was wrong. You _definitely_ haven't gone soft."

"Of course not," Misty scoffed, picking up her magazine once again. "If anything, I've just gotten even more ruthless."

* * *

**Not my favorite, to be honest. It could have been a little longer. I just wanted to get into the whole "Ash is actually a pretty sensitive guy and he's more affected by mental stuff than physical stuff." I also take like 4 communications classes a week, so that played a HUGE role in writing the story. Did you know giving someone the silent treatment is actually mentally damaging? The more you know.**


	23. Winter

**IT'S ALIVE. THE STORY IS ALIVE.**

**Ahem, sorry about that. But I'm not giving up on this story, I promise. Not when we're so close to the end! Also, I sort of told untitledmind that I would finish my alphabet challenge before hers. And I intend on keeping my promise XD**

* * *

**Winter**

As the tiny white flakes began to fall from the sky and land on the ground, Misty narrowed her eyes and let out a quiet, though obviously aggravated, huff.

The young woman absolutely _hated _this season. It was cold and dreary and mournful. Misty hated having to bundle herself up in sweaters and jackets. She could never understand how other girls fussed over the cold weather and so joyfully celebrated the death of summer. Pumpkin flavored coffees and cute boots meant nothing to Misty if she couldn't run around outside in the sunshine.

She allowed her jewel toned eyes to wander up towards the sky, which was a smoky gray color. Misty stuck her tongue out in disgust and finally stepped away from the window, no longer being able to stand looking out into the nearly depressing outdoors.

"Mist! Mist! It's snowing outside!"

At this, Misty groaned and rolled her eyes. Ash was bounding down the stairs, his feet pounding each and every step they landed on. Unlike her, Ash loved each and every season and never had a complaint. About anything, actually. Unless he was hungry. Then the young man complained an awful lot.

"I know, I see it," Misty grumbled.

"Aw, you're not excited?" Ash murmured.

"You know that I hate the winter," Misty sighed. "It's cold and dreary and…ugh. The snow goes _everywhere!_"

"Hey, you don't have to shovel it," Ash reasoned. "I do!"

"You know that I feel about that," Misty breathed.

"No," Ash replied honestly. "How?"

Misty bit her lip and glared at Ash, resisting the urge to smack the handsome boy upside the head. "I _always_ end up feeling bad and helping you out anyway! Even though I hate, hate, _hate_ the stupid snow."

"Aw, but Misty, the snow is so much fun!" Ash pushed. "It's cold and mushy and awesome! I've always loved the snow."

"Well, there's something you and I don't have in common," Misty huffed, brushing past Ash and marching into the kitchen. The raven haired boy raised an eyebrow and quickly followed after his girlfriend, not wanting to let her out of his sight for too long. Because when did _that,_ that's when the trouble always started.

"But…we have _so much_ in common!" Ash cried. "How can we only have one thing not in common?"

"Because we're regular human beings," Misty lamely replied. "We're gonna have some differences, you know. The fact that I hate winter and you don't just so happens to be one of those things. It's not a big deal."

To Ash, however, it was. Everyone always told him that opposites attracted, and that's why he and Misty were so good together. To be honest, however, he didn't see many differences between the two of them. He thought they were more alike than anything. Both were kind and caring, though stubborn and a little hard headed. Misty had more a hot streak than Ash, but that didn't mean much to him. He didn't really think that made them complete opposites. They were more alike than they were different.

Besides, Ash didn't like it when Misty was all sad and disappointed anyway. And it was obvious the snow didn't make her happy. Or winter in general. And Ash, being the sweet boyfriend that he was, didn't want to see his beloved girlfriend in such a sad state for an entire season.

He also knew his sanity couldn't handle it.

"Come on," Ash urged, running up to Misty and grabbing the bewildered young woman's hand.

"Come on where?" Misty murmured.

"Outside," Ash replied easily. "We're going to play in the snow."

"No!" Misty refuted, tearing her hand away from Ash's.

"It'll be fun!" Ash tried.

"No it won't!" Misty argued. "It's cold and wet and gross! Plus, I'm not some five year old little kid! What do you expect me to do? Build a snowman?"

"Yes."

"No."

"Hey, snowmen are a kind, caring people who have never done anything to hurt anyone," Ash huffed playfully. Misty's mouth betrayed her and bent into a smile, which she quickly tried (and failed) to cover with her hand. "Got you!"

"No you didn't," Misty grumbled, finally forcing her mouth back into a frown. "I'm not going to play in the lousy snow."

"Yes you are."

"Nope."

"I'm going to get your jacket," Ash announced in a sing song voice, striding towards the coat rack by the front door.

"You can get whatever you want to get," Misty called. "I'm still not going outside."

Ash soon enough returned with Misty's quilted emerald jacket, but the gym leader still wasn't ready to budge. Even when Ash threw the coat at her, she didn't move. She just let the garment hit her before falling listlessly to the floor.

"I thought you said you weren't a little kid," Ash mused.

"I'm not."

"Then why are you standing there pouting?"

Misty scowled and bit her lip. She absolutely _hated it _when Ash got the upper hand on her. Wasn't the boy supposed to be dense? He barely knew how to cut his food, but when he wanted to get under Misty's skin, he suddenly became a total smartass. It was such an enigma that not even _Misty _could begin to figure it out.

"I got you, didn't I?" Ash asked, sounding rather pleased with himself.

"I refuse to respond to that."

"I'm not going to leave you alone until you put on your jacket and you come outside with me," Ash warned.

At this, Misty looked over her shoulder and glared at her boyfriend. "Who's acting like a little kid now?"

"I don't deny it, unlike _some _people in this house."

Growling, Misty finally bent down and picked up her coat, throwing it on over her cream colored sweater. She zipped up the form fitted outer garment and stormed towards the front door, intentionally pushing Ash out of the way. He was in the middle of putting on his own black coat, but fortunately for him, he was a solid young man who couldn't be toppled over, even by Misty's surprising amount of strength.

Once his coat was fully on, Ash marched towards the front door and pulled it open, acting like a gentleman as he bowed and allowed Misty to exit first.

"I'm not thanking you, either," Misty announced, stomping right outside.

"I wasn't really expecting you to," Ash quipped with a small chuckle.

As he closed the door behind him, Misty stood in the middle of the front lawn and stared up at the sky, which was still dark and dreary. The tiny snowflakes, which had been falling for several hours now, were finally beginning to increase in size and severity. The little flurries were quickly picking up, and it wasn't long before Misty could no longer see the sky at all. Just a solid stretch of pure white haze.

"Isn't it pretty?"

Misty winced and looked over her shoulder, where she found Ash staring up at the sky himself.

"I mean, I usually hesitate to use the word 'pretty,'" Ash continued, his brow furrowing in contemplation. "But still."

"You never hesitate to use that word on me," Misty purred, watching on in amusement as Ash's cheeks turned a delicate shade of pink.

"I'm a man of few words, not a liar."

"Okay, well that entire statement is a lie, because you're certainly not a 'man of few words,'" Misty quipped.

Ash rolled his eyes, but smirked as he did so to show Misty he was just being playful. "Look, the ground is really starting to get covered!"

Misty looked down by her feet, which were covered by a pair of black leather boots, and found that the frosty white was, in fact, building. If anything, this only gave her a larger sense of disgust.

"There's not even enough here to _attempt _to make a snowman," Misty muttered. "Honestly, Ash, this is _so_ stupid. Why did you make me come out here?"

Before Misty knew it, she was being tackled into the thin layer of snow, and as soon as she managed to look up, she found herself face to face with a grinning Ash.

"What's the big idea?!" Misty demanded, trying to push the raven haired teen off of her.

"Are we having fun yet?" Ash chuckled.

"NO!" Misty shouted, smacking Ash's shoulder repeatedly. "Get off of me!"

"Come on!" Ash laughed, rolling over onto his own back so Misty was now lying on top of him. She was officially red in the face, and he wasn't sure if it was from embarrassment or anger. "You're just _trying_ not to have fun!"

"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard," Misty muttered, punching Ash's shoulder again before getting to her feet. Once she was up, she began to dust the snow off of her jacket and pants with fervent effort.

And that's when she got hit in the back of the head with a very crude snowball.

Narrowing her eyes, Misty looked slowly over her shoulder and snarled at Ash, who was smiling cheekily at her.

"Are we having fun now?" Ash quipped.

"I don't know," Misty warbled, quickly reaching down and scooping up her own lame snowball, "you tell me!"

She hocked it at Ash's face, and it made direct contact, earning a delighted giggle from the teenage girl who had thrown it. Quickly wiping the frost off of his face, Ash playfully glowered at his girlfriend, who suddenly looked a little humbled.

"Oh, you're going to pay for that," Ash threatened, bending down to gather more snow.

"Not if I get you first!" Misty bit back, bending down shortly after to collect her own snow.

She may not have realized it, at least not at the moment, but Misty was having a lot of fun playing outside in the snow with Ash. Everything with him seemed to be fun.

Even if it involved the cold, dreary winter.

* * *

**I know, it's weird. Cause we just got into fall! But I've always had this headcanon that Misty hates the cold because, well, she's a water girl. She likes wearing shorts and stuff. So the cold doesn't work for her. And the prompt was W. Winter. It was a good match :P**


	24. Xerox

**You guys waited so long for W that I got my butt going on X. And here it is! Some serious shenanigans in this one.**

* * *

**Xerox**

Misty hated paperwork.

She never thought that being a gym leader was going to be all fun and games. She knew it was work. Pokémon needed to be fed and cared for, and the gym needed to be up kept. All of that had been obvious to Misty. She'd seen her sisters do it all the time, and had even helped them out with the work.

What they had kept hidden from her, however, was the copious amounts of _paperwork_ that came with being a gym leader.

That's what annoyed Misty the most. She didn't mind tending to her Pokémon or even the gym. All of that made sense to her. But paperwork? Not so much. She felt like a kid at school. And, from what she had heard, school was boring and, in hindsight, a waste of time.

It made a lot of sense. So was the paperwork.

But the League always wanted it. They always sent it and wanted it back promptly. It was pretty dumb things. Stuff like the status of her Pokémon and the gym building, how many times she had won and lost in a month, how many badges she still had on hand…

It especially didn't make sense to Misty because that was all of the same stuff a gym inspector looked at when they came around. Which was stressful, but _much_ less annoying than filling out paperwork that didn't seem to serve any purpose other than to drive Misty insane.

Every time the stacks of paper came in the mail, Misty had to fill out every single sheet, then organize them, and then send them back to the League in a brand new envelope. Sometimes, and these were the worst times, Misty would have to bring them directly to League Headquarters at the Indigo Plateau. Hand delivering the paperwork actually might have been even worse than doing it in the first place.

In every single case, Misty would have to photo copy the papers before sending them out or delivering them. She needed the information on hand for her records. The gym inspectors sometimes liked to check them out. And, aside from that, it was good for Misty to have them around. She kept all of her filled out papers in a file cabinet, and was able to pull them out whenever she needed to look something up.

Fortunately, her sisters had _actually _been smart enough to make this job a lot easier on Misty. While they were still in charge of the gym, probably because they were too lazy to actually venture out and go all the way to a store in order to do so, the older three had purchased a copy machine and put it in the gym lobby, behind the desk. Misty couldn't understand why they had done that as a child, but now it all made sense. And she actually appreciated them for it. Because it was a lot easier to copy the papers in the gym instead of having to go somewhere else to do it. Especially when you were newly married and had apparently tied the knot with a child who didn't know how to do anything for himself including cooking, cleaning, and shopping of all varieties.

That's why Misty had been so aggravated with the League's most recently mailed out paperwork. It had come with a label stuck to the front of the envelope marked "Urgent!" Misty, of course, knew that this meant the paperwork had to be expedited. Not only that, but as soon as she actually opened the envelope up, she discovered a note inside from the offices, requesting that the paperwork be hand delivered by the next afternoon.

That was a disgustingly fast turnaround, even for Misty's expectations.

She hated to leave Ash alone. Not only because she seemed to have formed some sort of separation anxiety from him (as pathetic as _that_ sounded) but because he was so…well, inept. The poor guy could barely function on his own. Misty was afraid that if she left him alone for the afternoon, he would starve to death. Or destroy the house. Ash got stir crazy very easily. And when that happened, he got pretty wild.

But, she had no choice. As gym leader, that was her job. It was terribly stupid and seemed really unnecessary, but the Pokémon League was the _one_ group of people who Misty couldn't get into an argument with.

Which was really too bad, because she had a lot of bones to pick with them.

So, sucking it up like any good gym leader should, Misty quickly filled out the paperwork (or as quickly as one _could_ fill out a stack so expansive) and copied the sheets, grabbing one of the piles and leaving it haphazardly on her desk before setting out for the Indigo Plateau.

**XXX**

By the time she finally got there, Misty was fully annoyed. She just wanted them to take the paperwork out of her hands so she'd never have to look at that particular stack ever again.

Well…except for the copied pile that was now sitting on her desk back at the gym.

Letting out a frustrated huff as she sat in the lobby, waiting for someone to call her in and take the papers, Misty opened up the large yellow envelope and pulled out the sheets, deciding to look them over one more time before handing the work into the League.

And thank goodness she had.

For what she found when she pulled out the paperwork was not the many forms she had spent hours upon hours filling out, but rather black and white photo copies of _her husband's face_.

Groaning, Misty squeezed her eyes shut and smacked herself in the face with the unflattering images of Ash. She should have known. This wasn't the first time. Ash must have gone stir crazy while she was battling the day before and played around with the copy machine. Scanning his face and…as Misty flipped through the sheets and then properly confirmed…Pikachu's as well.

Unfortunately for her, before she could even _attempt_ to make a run for it with the false copies, Misty was called in by the head of the Pokémon League himself: Mr. Goodshow.

"Sir…" Misty choked out as she followed the old man back to his office, "I _really_ can't give you these forms now…there's…uh…been a slight error with them, I noticed. I have to go back to the gym and fix it right away!"

"Oh, now Misty, don't be so hard on yourself!" Goodshow laughed. "I know how seriously you gym leaders take your work, but there's no need to get all worked up over it."

_If only you knew how little I cared about this damn paperwork, _Misty bit in her head.

"No, I really do mean it," Misty uttered instead, keeping her sarcastic thoughts to herself. "There's a serious problem with this paperwork. Not slight or small. _Serious._"

"I'm sure whatever it is can be quickly and properly fixed by our staff," Goodshow assured the obviously flustered Misty. "Now, I'll just take the forms from you…"

Misty grimaced and, knowing she couldn't continue to argue with the man, forfeited the sheets. He grinned appreciatively at her and took the paperwork, flipping through the pieces of paper. Misty just watched as his face began to fall, going from jovial to downright bewildered.

"Oh…" Goodshow murmured, holding up one of the pictures of Ash that showed the young man pressing his right cheek against the screen of the scanner while sticking his tongue out of his mouth and holding his eyebrows up as high as they would go. "Oh dear."

Misty sighed and shook her head, knowing full well she had tried to warn Goodshow in advance. "Hey, he may be my husband, but he's _your_ Pokémon Master."

* * *

**Poor Misty. It's like being married to a little boy XD But he's really sweet, so it's okay :P**


End file.
